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Articles 1681 - 1710 of 2552

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Sidestream Smoke Exposure Increases The Susceptibility Of Airway Epithelia To Adenoviral Infection, Priyanka Sharma, Abimbola O. Kolawole, Susan B. Core, Adriana E. Kajon, Katherine J.D.A. Excoffon Nov 2015

Sidestream Smoke Exposure Increases The Susceptibility Of Airway Epithelia To Adenoviral Infection, Priyanka Sharma, Abimbola O. Kolawole, Susan B. Core, Adriana E. Kajon, Katherine J.D.A. Excoffon

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Background: Although significant epidemiological evidence indicates that cigarette smoke exposure increases the incidence and severity of viral infection, the molecular mechanisms behind the increased susceptibility of the respiratory tract to viral pathogens are unclear. Adenoviruses are non-enveloped DNA viruses and important causative agents of acute respiratory disease. The Coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor (CAR) is the primary receptor for many adenoviruses. We hypothesized that cigarette smoke exposure increases epithelial susceptibility to adenovirus infection by increasing the abundance of apical CAR. Methodology and Findings: Cultured human airway epithelial cells (CaLu-3) were used as a model to investigate the effect of sidestream cigarette …

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Viewpoint: A Response To "Screening And Isolation To Control Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus: Sense, Nonsense, And Evidence", Kevin T. Kavanagh, Lindsay Calderon, Daniel Saman Nov 2015

Viewpoint: A Response To "Screening And Isolation To Control Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus: Sense, Nonsense, And Evidence", Kevin T. Kavanagh, Lindsay Calderon, Daniel Saman

Biological Sciences Faculty and Staff Research

Surveillance and isolation for the prevention of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has become a controversial topic, one that causes heated debate and appears to be surrounded by both politics and industrial conflicts-of-interest. There have been calls from numerous authors for a movement away from rigid mandates and toward an evidence-based medicine approach. However, much of the evidence can be viewed with an entirely different interpretation. Two major studies with negative findings have had an adverse impact on recommendations regarding active detection and isolation (ADI) for MRSA. However the negative findings in these studies can be explained by shortcomings in study …

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Research, Monitoring, Assessment And Development Plan 2015 – 2020, Department Of Fisheries Nov 2015

Research, Monitoring, Assessment And Development Plan 2015 – 2020, Department Of Fisheries

Fisheries Occasional Publications

No abstract provided.

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The Potential For A Blood Test For Scabies, Larry G. Arlian, Hermann Feldmeier, Majorie S. Morgan Oct 2015

The Potential For A Blood Test For Scabies, Larry G. Arlian, Hermann Feldmeier, Majorie S. Morgan

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Scabies, caused by the mite S. scabiei that burrows in the skin of humans, is a contagious skin disease that affects millions of people worldwide. It is a significant public health burden in economically disadvantaged populations, and outbreaks are common in nursing homes, daycare facilities, schools and workplaces in developed countries. It causes significant morbidity, and in chronic cases, associated bacterial infections can lead to renal and cardiac diseases. Scabies is very difficult to diagnose by the usual skin scrape test, and a presumptive diagnosis is often made based on clinical signs such as rash and itch that can …

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A Tail Of Two Phages: Genomic And Functional Analysis Of Listeria Monocytogenes Phages Vb_Lmos_188 And Vb_Lmos_293 Reveal The Receptor-Binding Proteins Involved In Host Specificity, Aidan Casey, Kieran Jordan, Horst Neve, Aidan Coffey, Olivia Mcauliffe Oct 2015

A Tail Of Two Phages: Genomic And Functional Analysis Of Listeria Monocytogenes Phages Vb_Lmos_188 And Vb_Lmos_293 Reveal The Receptor-Binding Proteins Involved In Host Specificity, Aidan Casey, Kieran Jordan, Horst Neve, Aidan Coffey, Olivia Mcauliffe

Department of Biological Sciences Publications

The physical characteristics of bacteriophages establish them as viable candidates for downstream development of pathogen detection assays and biocontrol measures. To utilize phages for such purposes, a detailed knowledge of their host interaction mechanisms is a prerequisite. There is currently a wealth of knowledge available concerning Gram-negative phage-host interaction, but little by comparison for Gram-positive phages and Listeria phages in particular. In this research, the lytic spectrum of two recently isolated Listeria monocytogenes phages (vB_LmoS_188 and vB_LmoS_293) was determined, and the genomic basis for their observed serotype 4b/4e host-specificity was investigated using comparative genomics. The late tail genes of these …

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Colonization Of Lutzomyia Verrucarum And Lutzomyia Longipalpis Sand Flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) By Bartonella Bacilliformis, The Etiologic Agent Of Carrion's Disease, James M. Battisti, Phillip G. Lawyer, Michael F. Minnick Oct 2015

Colonization Of Lutzomyia Verrucarum And Lutzomyia Longipalpis Sand Flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) By Bartonella Bacilliformis, The Etiologic Agent Of Carrion's Disease, James M. Battisti, Phillip G. Lawyer, Michael F. Minnick

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Bartonella bacilliformis is a pathogenic bacterium transmitted to humans presumably by bites of phlebotomine sand flies, infection with which results in a bi-phasic syndrome termed Carrion's disease. After constructing a low-passage GFP-labeled strain of B. bacilliformis, we artificially infected Lutzomyia verrucarum and L. longipalpis populations, and subsequently monitored colonization of sand flies by fluorescence microscopy. Initially, colonization of the two fly species was indistinguishable, with bacteria exhibiting a high degree of motility, yet still confined to the abdominal midgut. After 48h, B. bacilliformis transitioned from bacillus-shape to a non-motile, small coccoid form and appeared to be digested along with …

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Incidence Of West Nile Virus In House Sparrow Nestlings In Relation To Parental Effort, Natalie Mickelsen Oct 2015

Incidence Of West Nile Virus In House Sparrow Nestlings In Relation To Parental Effort, Natalie Mickelsen

Kaleidoscope

The house sparrow, Passer domesticus, is known to be an important host of West Nile (WN) virus and may contribute to the transmission of WN virus to humans. However, little is known about the factors that influence the occurrence of WN virus in birds. I conducted a study to determine if parental care was related to the rates of WN virus infections among nestling birds. I observed house sparrow nests for one hour periods noting the time the male and female parent spent on the nest box, in the nest box, and the number of food trips, as measures …

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An Insight Into The Functional Role Of Thioredoxin Reductase, A Selenoprotein, In Maintaining Normal Native Microbiota In The Gulf Coast Tick (Ambylomma Maculatum), Khemraj Budachetri, Shahid Karim Oct 2015

An Insight Into The Functional Role Of Thioredoxin Reductase, A Selenoprotein, In Maintaining Normal Native Microbiota In The Gulf Coast Tick (Ambylomma Maculatum), Khemraj Budachetri, Shahid Karim

Faculty Publications

Tick selenoproteins have been associated with antioxidant activity in ticks. Thioredoxin reductase (TrxR), also a selenoprotein, belongs to the pyridine nucleotide‐disulphide oxidoreductase family of proteins and is an important antioxidant. Molecular interactions between native microbiota and tick hosts have barely been investigated to date. In this study, we determined the functional role of TrxR in tick feeding and in maintenance of the native microbial community. TrxR transcript levels remained high and microbial load was reduced throughout tick attachment to the vertebrate host. RNA interference (RNAi) showed that depletion of TrxR activity did not interfere with tick haematophagy or phenotype but …

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Whole-Genome Sequencing Of Kshv From Zambian Kaposi’S Sarcoma Biopsies Reveals Unique Viral Diversity, Landon N. Olp, Adrien Jeanniard, Clemence Marimo, John T. West, Charles Wood Sep 2015

Whole-Genome Sequencing Of Kshv From Zambian Kaposi’S Sarcoma Biopsies Reveals Unique Viral Diversity, Landon N. Olp, Adrien Jeanniard, Clemence Marimo, John T. West, Charles Wood

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is the etiological agent for Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS). Both KSHV and KS are endemic in sub-Saharan Africa where approximately 84% of global KS cases occur. Nevertheless, whole-genome sequencing of KSHV has only been completed using isolates from Western countries—where KS is not endemic. The lack of whole-genome KSHV sequence data from the most clinically important geographical region, sub-Saharan Africa, represents an important gap as it remains unclear whether genomic diversity has a role on KSHV pathogenesis. We hypothesized that distinct KSHV genotypes might be present in sub-Saharan Africa compared to Western countries. Using a KSHV-targeted enrichment …

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Clinically Available Medicines Demonstrating Anti-Toxoplasma Activity, Andrew J. Neville, Sydney J. Zach, Xiaofang Wang, Joshua L. Larson, Abigail K. Judge, Lisa A. Davis, Jonathan L. Vennerstrom, Paul H. Davis Sep 2015

Clinically Available Medicines Demonstrating Anti-Toxoplasma Activity, Andrew J. Neville, Sydney J. Zach, Xiaofang Wang, Joshua L. Larson, Abigail K. Judge, Lisa A. Davis, Jonathan L. Vennerstrom, Paul H. Davis

Biology Faculty Publications

Toxoplasma gondii is an apicomplexan parasite of humans and other mammals, including livestock and companion animals. While chemotherapeutic regimens, including pyrimethamine and sulfadiazine regimens, ameliorate acute or recrudescent disease such as toxoplasmic encephalitis or ocular toxoplasmosis, these drugs are often toxic to the host. Moreover, no approved options are available to treat infected women who are pregnant. Lastly, no drug regimen has shown the ability to eradicate the chronic stage of infection, which is characterized by chemoresistant intracellular cysts that persist for the life of the host. In an effort to promote additional chemotherapeutic options, we now evaluate clinically available …

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The Depsipeptide Romidepsin Reverses Hiv-1 Latency In Vivo, Ole S. Søgaard, Mette E. Graversen, Steffen Leth, Rikke Olesen, Christel R. Brinkmann, Sara K. Nissen, Anne Sofie Kjaer, Mariane H. Schleimann, Paul W. Denton, William J. Hey-Cunningham, Giuseppe Pantaleo, Kim Krogsgaard, Maja Sommerfelt, Remi Fromentin, Nicolas Chomont, Thomas A. Rasmussen, Lars Østergaard, Martin Tolstrup Sep 2015

The Depsipeptide Romidepsin Reverses Hiv-1 Latency In Vivo, Ole S. Søgaard, Mette E. Graversen, Steffen Leth, Rikke Olesen, Christel R. Brinkmann, Sara K. Nissen, Anne Sofie Kjaer, Mariane H. Schleimann, Paul W. Denton, William J. Hey-Cunningham, Giuseppe Pantaleo, Kim Krogsgaard, Maja Sommerfelt, Remi Fromentin, Nicolas Chomont, Thomas A. Rasmussen, Lars Østergaard, Martin Tolstrup

Biology Faculty Publications

Pharmacologically-induced activation of replication competent proviruses from latency in the presence of antiretroviral treatment (ART) has been proposed as a step towards curing HIV-1 infection. However, until now, approaches to reverse HIV-1 latency in humans have yielded mixed results. Here, we report a proof-of-concept phase Ib/IIa trial where 6 aviremic HIV-1 infected adults received intravenous 5 mg/m2 romidepsin (Celgene) once weekly for 3 weeks while maintaining ART. Lymphocyte histone H3 acetylation, a cellular measure of the pharmacodynamic response to romidepsin, increased rapidly (maximum fold range: 3.7–7.7 relative to baseline) within the first hours following each romidepsin administration. Concurrently, HIV-1 transcription …

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A Forward Genetic Screen Identifies Factors Associated With Fever Pathogenesis In Plasmodium Falciparum, Phaedra J. Thomas Sep 2015

A Forward Genetic Screen Identifies Factors Associated With Fever Pathogenesis In Plasmodium Falciparum, Phaedra J. Thomas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Infectious diseases that spread from person-to-person and continent-to-continent are a cause for concern for any health entity. One such disease is malaria, a mosquito-borne infection instigated by the protozoan parasite, Plasmodium falciparum. Hundreds of millions of people are affected annually and it is responsible for nearly 1 million deaths. It is the most fatal species causing malaria and proliferates in human red blood cells with a life cycle occurring every 48 hours. At this time, the parasite’s late stage form or schizont bursts from the erythrocyte releasing immune-inducing particles and infective forms (merozoites) into the bloodstream. The merozoites go …

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The Conserved G-Protein Coupled Receptor Fshr-1 Regulates Protective Host Responses To Infection And Oxidative Stress, Elizabeth V. Miller, Leah N. Grandi, Jennifer A. Giannini, Joseph D. Robinson, Jennifer R. Powell Sep 2015

The Conserved G-Protein Coupled Receptor Fshr-1 Regulates Protective Host Responses To Infection And Oxidative Stress, Elizabeth V. Miller, Leah N. Grandi, Jennifer A. Giannini, Joseph D. Robinson, Jennifer R. Powell

Biology Faculty Publications

The innate immune system’s ability to sense an infection is critical so that it can rapidly respond if pathogenic microorganisms threaten the host, but otherwise maintain a quiescent baseline state to avoid causing damage to the host or to commensal microorganisms. One important mechanism for discriminating between pathogenic and non-pathogenic bacteria is the recognition of cellular damage caused by a pathogen during the course of infection. InCaenorhabditis elegans, the conserved G-protein coupled receptor FSHR-1 is an important constituent of the innate immune response. FSHR-1 activates the expression of antimicrobial infection response genes in infected worms and delays accumulation …

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Maintenance Of Brucellosis In Yellowstone Bison: Linking Seasonal Food Resources, Host-Pathogen Interaction, And Life-History Trade-Offs, John J. Treanor, Chris Geremia, Michael A. Ballou, Duane H. Keisler, Patrick J. White, John J. Cox, Phillip H. Crowley Sep 2015

Maintenance Of Brucellosis In Yellowstone Bison: Linking Seasonal Food Resources, Host-Pathogen Interaction, And Life-History Trade-Offs, John J. Treanor, Chris Geremia, Michael A. Ballou, Duane H. Keisler, Patrick J. White, John J. Cox, Phillip H. Crowley

Biology Faculty Publications

The seasonal availability of food resources is an important factor shaping the life-history strategies of organisms. During times of nutritional restriction, physiological trade-offs can induce periods of immune suppression, thereby increasing susceptibility to infectious disease. Our goal was to provide a conceptual framework describing how the endemic level bovine brucellosis (Brucella abortus) may be maintained in Yellowstone bison based on the seasonality of food resources and the life-history strategies of the host and pathogen. Our analysis was based on active B. abortus infection (measured via bacterial culture), nutritional indicators (measured as metabolites and hormones in plasma), and carcass …

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Characterization Of Staphylococcus Aureus Isolated From The Nasal Cavity Flora Of Nursing Majors, Jennifer Rath, Breanna Christmas, Kristin F. Picardo, Theresa Westbay Aug 2015

Characterization Of Staphylococcus Aureus Isolated From The Nasal Cavity Flora Of Nursing Majors, Jennifer Rath, Breanna Christmas, Kristin F. Picardo, Theresa Westbay

Biology Faculty/Staff Publications

Approximately 30% of people have the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) in their nasal passages. Within this group, approximately 1-2% are colonized with methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), although many do not display any symptoms.1 MRSA is an opportunistic pathogen that can potentially cause diseases such as pneumonia, skin infections and sepsis. MRSA infections are commonly grouped into two categories, hospital associated (HA) or community associated (CA) based on where the infection was acquired and the profile of antibiotic resistance. S. aureus and MRSA can spread between individuals through physical contact and presents a serious health hazard to patients if healthcare …

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Β-Lactamase Gene Exchange Within The Enterobacteriaceae, Mitchell William Pesesky Aug 2015

Β-Lactamase Gene Exchange Within The Enterobacteriaceae, Mitchell William Pesesky

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Antibiotic resistance represents a grave threat to modern medicine’s control over infectious disease. Pathogens of the Enterobacteriaceae have proven particularly problematic as they can cause a wide variety of infections, and they can be, in some cases, resistant to all antibiotics recommended for use against them. A major part of the threat posed by the Enterobacteriaceae is their ability to exchange resistance genes by horizontal gene transfer (HGT). HGT has allowed some Enterobacteriaceae to quickly accumulate resistance against diverse antibiotics, and then to spread their resistance gene collection to other pathogenic strains. I explore three aspects of how HGT has …

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Escherichia Coli Iron Acquisition Paradigms And Host Responses In The Human Urinary Milieu, Robin Reid Shields-Cutler Aug 2015

Escherichia Coli Iron Acquisition Paradigms And Host Responses In The Human Urinary Milieu, Robin Reid Shields-Cutler

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are some of the most common bacterial infections worldwide and are increasingly complicated by high antibiotic resistance and recurrence rates. Explanations for the marked individual differences in UTI susceptibility remain incomplete. In this thesis we show that urinary colonization by uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) is influenced by urine composition and the activity of an important innate immune protein, siderocalin (SCN; also called lipocalin 2 or neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin/NGAL). During UTI, host factors limit the availability of iron, an essential nutrient for the invading pathogen. In response, UPEC modify the urinary environment with metal binding siderophores, some …

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Characterizing And Modeling Antibiotic Resistance Dynamics In Diverse Microbial Communities, Molly Krisann Gibson Aug 2015

Characterizing And Modeling Antibiotic Resistance Dynamics In Diverse Microbial Communities, Molly Krisann Gibson

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Complex microbial communities colonize every habitat investigated to date, including soil, animals, water, and humans, as well as the structures we live in. It has been hypothesized that there is network of exchange allowing both bacterial organisms and functions to seamlessly move between and within these environments. These microbial communities often serve essential and beneficial functions for the host organism or environment. This is particularly evident in the human gut, where microbial communities consistently provide a set of services to its human host, including protecting against enteric pathogens, liberating nutrients from food, and signaling immune system regulation. However, these communities …

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Adaptive Mechanisms Of Niche Remodeling In Streptococcus Pyogenes, Elyse Paluscio Aug 2015

Adaptive Mechanisms Of Niche Remodeling In Streptococcus Pyogenes, Elyse Paluscio

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

The Gram-positive bacterium Streptococcus pyogenes is a remarkably successful pathogen, capable of infecting numerous tissue sites within its human host. The ability of S. pyogenes to invade these different niches is, in part, due to the species’ ability to monitor various physical and chemical signals in its environment and alter its transcriptional profile in response to these differential conditions. As a member of the lactic acid bacteria, S. pyogenes has a simple fermentative metabolism and relies exclusively on a combination of homo-lactic and mixed acid fermentation as a means of generating energy in the cell. As a consequence of its …

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A Gnotobiotic Mouse Model For Studying The Effect Of Human Gut Community Ecology On A Pathobiont, Bacteroides Fragilis, Vitas Wagner Aug 2015

A Gnotobiotic Mouse Model For Studying The Effect Of Human Gut Community Ecology On A Pathobiont, Bacteroides Fragilis, Vitas Wagner

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATIONA Gnotobiotic Mouse Model for Studying the Effect of Human Gut Community Ecology on a Pathobiont, Bacteroides fragilisbyVitas WagnerDoctor of Philosophy in Biology and Biomedical SciencesEvolution, Ecology, and Population BiologyWashington University in St. Louis, 2015Professor Jeffrey I. Gordon, ChairChildhood undernutrition represents a pressing global health challenge. Epidemiologic studies have shown that undernutrition is not due to food insecurity alone, but rather represents a complex set of interactions between intra- and intergenerational factors. The gut microbiota has been implicated as one such factor. This thesis tested the hypothesis that enteropathogen burden affects the structure and expressed functions of …

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Host Immune Signals Regulate Blood-Brain Barrier Function During Central Nervous System Infection And Autoimmunity, Brian Daniels Aug 2015

Host Immune Signals Regulate Blood-Brain Barrier Function During Central Nervous System Infection And Autoimmunity, Brian Daniels

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

A major hallmark of neuroinflammatory diseases is the breakdown of the blood-brain barrier (BBB). This barrier between the hematogenous circulation and the parenchyma of the central nervous system (CNS) is a multicellular interface made up of endothelial cells joined by tight and adherens junctions (TJs and AJs), along with pericytes and the endfeet projections of astroglia. Together, these cells tightly restrict the movement of solutes and cells from the circulation into the CNS in a manner crucial for proper CNS homeostasis. Regulation of BBB function occurs dynamically during neuroinflammatory diseases such as infection and CNS autoimmunity, resulting in both protective …

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Role Of Macrophages In Muscle Transfection With Pdna/Pluronic Formulation, Vivek Mahajan Aug 2015

Role Of Macrophages In Muscle Transfection With Pdna/Pluronic Formulation, Vivek Mahajan

Theses & Dissertations

Non-ionic amphiphilic block copolymers of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and poly(propylene oxide) (PPO), Pluronics, arranged in a tri-block structure PEO-PPO-PEO, have raised a considerable interest in skeletal muscle Gene Therapy. Previous studies have demonstrated that co-administration of Pluronics with naked plasmid DNA (pDNA) by direct i.m. injection enhanced transgene expression not only in muscle but also in distal lymphoid organs (spleen and lymph nodes) and this response was strain-dependent; not observed in athymic (BALB/c nu/nu) mouse; suggesting a role of immune cells in gene transfer to skeletal muscles. Therefore, we first evaluated the role of inflammation and inflammatory cells, on muscle …

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Proteins Of Bartonella Bacilliformis:Candidates For Vaccine Development, Cesar Henriquez-Camocho, Palmira Ventosilla, Michael F. Minnick, Joaquim Ruiz, Ciro Maguina Aug 2015

Proteins Of Bartonella Bacilliformis:Candidates For Vaccine Development, Cesar Henriquez-Camocho, Palmira Ventosilla, Michael F. Minnick, Joaquim Ruiz, Ciro Maguina

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Bartonella bacilliformis is the etiologic agent of Carrion's disease suggest complex adaptations by the bacterium to the human host, with the overall objectives of persistence, maintenance of a reservoir state for vectorial transmission, and immune evasion. These events include a multitude of biochemical and genetic mechanisms involving both bacterial and host proteins. This review focuses on proteins involved in interactions between B. bacilliformis and human host. Some of them (e.g., flagellin, Brps, IalB, FtsZ, Hbp/Pap31, and other outer membrane proteins) are potential protein antigen candidates for a synthetic vaccine.

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The Effect Of Environmental Selection Pressure On The Rate Of Recombination To An Advantageous Receptor Mutation In Bovine Coronavirus, Gavin Schroter, Sally Hall, Mona Hwang, Monica Borucki Aug 2015

The Effect Of Environmental Selection Pressure On The Rate Of Recombination To An Advantageous Receptor Mutation In Bovine Coronavirus, Gavin Schroter, Sally Hall, Mona Hwang, Monica Borucki

STAR Program Research Presentations

Bovine Coronavirus (BCoV) is an important analogue in understanding the effectiveness of zoonotic, single-stranded, positive sense RNA viruses. Many of the most recent viral outbreaks have been attributed to RNA viruses that have one, or more, animal reservoirs [1]. BCoV is such a great candidate for studying these types of viruses because they are from the family Coronaviridae, which also contains the viruses that cause severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). The goal of this study was to observe changes in genetic makeup of the virus’ outer membrane Spike protein via recombination between two …

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Prevalence Of A Chytrid Pathogen (Batrachochytrium Dendrobatidis) In Eastern Hellbender Salamanders In New York And Pennsylvania, Linxuan Wu Aug 2015

Prevalence Of A Chytrid Pathogen (Batrachochytrium Dendrobatidis) In Eastern Hellbender Salamanders In New York And Pennsylvania, Linxuan Wu

Biology Theses

Amphibian populations are currently declining globally. There are many possible causes for these declines, among which an emerging infectious disease, chytridiomycosis, has been implicated. Chytridiomycosis in the U.S.A. is mainly caused by the Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis. In this study, I used qPCR assays to detect the existence of this pathogen in the Eastern Hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis) populations in the Allegheny and Susquehanna River drainages of New York and Pennsylvania. Chytrid is most often tested by using skin swabs, but in this study, tail clips, dorsal skin, blood and eggs were tested as well. Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis was detected …

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Community-Acquired Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (Ca-Mrsa) Usa300 Perturbs Acquisition Of Lysosomal Hydrolases And Requires Phagosomal Acidification For Survival In A Human Macrophage Cell Line, Zachary Ronald Tranchemontagne Aug 2015

Community-Acquired Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (Ca-Mrsa) Usa300 Perturbs Acquisition Of Lysosomal Hydrolases And Requires Phagosomal Acidification For Survival In A Human Macrophage Cell Line, Zachary Ronald Tranchemontagne

All Theses And Dissertations

Community-acquired Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) strain USA300 is a major cause of invasive drug-resistant skin and soft tissue infections in humans. Although S. aureus is a well-recognized extracellular pathogen, recent reports that USA300 survives inside host macrophages suggest that the intramacrophage environment may be a niche for persistent infection. Intramacrophage survival requires bacteria to avoid destruction in the phagosome; however, mechanisms by which USA300 evades phagosomal defenses are unclear. We examined the fate of the USA300-containing phagosome in human THP-1 macrophages by evaluating phagosomal acidification and maturation, and by testing the impact of phagosomal conditions on bacterial viability. Utilizing confocal …

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Virulence Evolution Of Fungal Pathogens In Social And Solitary Bees With An Emphasis On Multiple Infections, Ellen G. Klinger Aug 2015

Virulence Evolution Of Fungal Pathogens In Social And Solitary Bees With An Emphasis On Multiple Infections, Ellen G. Klinger

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The health of pollinators, especially bees, is of the utmost importance to success of many agricultural ecosystems. Microorganisms can cause diseases in bees; such microbes are pathogenic. The ability of a pathogen to cause harm to its host (such as a bee) is termed its virulence. Studying the evolution of different levels of virulence can lead researchers to a better understanding of pathogens, and potentially predict how much harm a pathogen can cause in the future. We studied the evolution of virulence levels for a fungal disease of bees. This group of fungi is composed of 28 species, and some …

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Evidence For The Persistence Of Food Web Structure After Amphibian Extirpation In A Neotropical Stream, Thomas R. Barnum, John M. Drake, Jose Checo Colón-Gaud, Amanda T. Rugenski, Therese C. Frauendorf, Scott Connelly, Susan S. Kilham, Matt R. Whiles, Karen R. Lips, Catherine M. Pringle Aug 2015

Evidence For The Persistence Of Food Web Structure After Amphibian Extirpation In A Neotropical Stream, Thomas R. Barnum, John M. Drake, Jose Checo Colón-Gaud, Amanda T. Rugenski, Therese C. Frauendorf, Scott Connelly, Susan S. Kilham, Matt R. Whiles, Karen R. Lips, Catherine M. Pringle

Biology: Faculty Publications

Species losses are predicted to simplify food web structure, and disease‐driven amphibian declines in Central America offer an opportunity to test this prediction. Assessment of insect community composition, combined with gut content analyses, was used to generate periphyton–insect food webs for a Panamanian stream, both pre‐ and post‐amphibian decline. We then used network analysis to assess the effects of amphibian declines on food web structure. Although 48% of consumer taxa, including many insect taxa, were lost between pre‐ and post‐amphibian decline sampling dates, connectance declined by less than 3%. We then quantified the resilience of food web structure by calculating …

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Geospatial Resolution Of Human And Bacterial Diversity With City-Scale Metagenomics, Ebrahim Afshinnekoo, Cem Meydan, Shanin Chowdhury, Dyala Jaroudi, Collin Boyer, Nick Bernstein, Julia M. Maritz, Darryl Reeves, Jorge Gandara, Sagar Chhangawala, Sofia Ahsanuddin, Amber Simmons, Timothy Nessel, Bharathi Sundaresh, Elizabeth Pereira, Ellen Jorgensen, Sergios-Orestis Kolokotronis, Nell Kirchberger, Isaac Garcia, David Gandara, Sean Dhanraj, Tanzina Nawrin, Yogesh Saletore, Noah Alexander, Priyanka Vijay, Elizabeth M. Hénaff, Paul Zumbo, Michael Walsh, Gregory D. O'Mullan, Scott Tighe, Joel T. Dudley, Anya Dunaif, Sean Ennis, Eoghan O'Halloran, Tiago R. Magalhaes, Braden Boone, Angela L. Jones, Theodore R. Muth, Katie Schneider Paolantonio, Elizabeth Alter, Eric E. Schadt, Jeanne Garbarino, Robert J. Prill, Jane M. Carlton, Shawn Levy, Christopher E. Mason Jul 2015

Geospatial Resolution Of Human And Bacterial Diversity With City-Scale Metagenomics, Ebrahim Afshinnekoo, Cem Meydan, Shanin Chowdhury, Dyala Jaroudi, Collin Boyer, Nick Bernstein, Julia M. Maritz, Darryl Reeves, Jorge Gandara, Sagar Chhangawala, Sofia Ahsanuddin, Amber Simmons, Timothy Nessel, Bharathi Sundaresh, Elizabeth Pereira, Ellen Jorgensen, Sergios-Orestis Kolokotronis, Nell Kirchberger, Isaac Garcia, David Gandara, Sean Dhanraj, Tanzina Nawrin, Yogesh Saletore, Noah Alexander, Priyanka Vijay, Elizabeth M. Hénaff, Paul Zumbo, Michael Walsh, Gregory D. O'Mullan, Scott Tighe, Joel T. Dudley, Anya Dunaif, Sean Ennis, Eoghan O'Halloran, Tiago R. Magalhaes, Braden Boone, Angela L. Jones, Theodore R. Muth, Katie Schneider Paolantonio, Elizabeth Alter, Eric E. Schadt, Jeanne Garbarino, Robert J. Prill, Jane M. Carlton, Shawn Levy, Christopher E. Mason

Publications and Research

The panoply of microorganisms and other species present in our environment influence human health and disease, especially in cities, but have not been profiled with metagenomics at a city-wide scale. We sequenced DNA from surfaces across the entire New York City (NYC) subway system, the Gowanus Canal, and public parks. Nearly half of the DNA (48%) does not match any known organism; identified organisms spanned 1,688 bacterial, viral, archaeal, and eukaryotic taxa, which were enriched for harmless genera associated with skin (e.g., Acinetobacter). Predicted ancestry of human DNA left on subway surfaces can recapitulate U.S. Census demographic data, and bacterial …

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Biofilm Formation By Borrelia Burgdorferi Sensu Lato, Venkata Arun Timmaraju, Priyanka A.S. Theophilus, Kunthavai Balasubramanian, Shafiq Shakih, David F. Luecke, Eva Sapi Jul 2015

Biofilm Formation By Borrelia Burgdorferi Sensu Lato, Venkata Arun Timmaraju, Priyanka A.S. Theophilus, Kunthavai Balasubramanian, Shafiq Shakih, David F. Luecke, Eva Sapi

Biology and Environmental Science Faculty Publications

Bacterial biofilms are microbial communities held together by an extracellular polymeric substance matrix predominantly composed of polysaccharides, proteins and nucleic acids. We had previously shown that Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto, the causative organism of Lyme disease in the United States is capable of forming biofilms in vitro. Here, we investigated biofilm formation by B. afzelii and B. garinii, which cause Lyme disease in Europe. Using various histochemistry and microscopy techniques, we show that B. afzelii and B. garinii form biofilms, which resemble biofilms formed by B. burgdorferisensu stricto. High-resolution atomic force microscopy revealed similarities in the …

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