Digital Commons Network^™

Establishing Parameters For Objective Interpretation Of Dna Profile Evidence, Dan E. Krane

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Temporal Regulation Of The Muscle Gene Cascade By Macho1 And Tbx6 Transcription Factors In Ciona Intestinalis, Jamie E. Kugler, Stefan Gazdoiu, Izumi Oda-Ishii, Yale J. Passamaneck, Albert J. Erives, Anna Di Gregorio

Dartmouth Scholarship

For over a century, muscle formation in the ascidian embryo has been representative of 'mosaic' development. The molecular basis of muscle-fate predetermination has been partly elucidated with the discovery of Macho1, a maternal zinc-finger transcription factor necessary and sufficient for primary muscle development, and of its transcriptional intermediaries Tbx6b and Tbx6c. However, the molecular mechanisms by which the maternal information is decoded by cis-regulatory modules (CRMs) associated with muscle transcription factor and structural genes, and the ways by which a seamless transition from maternal to zygotic transcription is ensured, are still mostly unclear. By combining misexpression assays with CRM analyses, …

The Effects Of Gdf8 And Activin A On Muscle Atrophy, Amy Sato '10

Honor Scholar Theses

Muscle atrophy and weakening are major health care concerns. For instance sarcopenia, which is a condition of extreme muscle loss and weakening due to aging, was estimated to have cost over 18.5 billion for the year 2000 in the US (Dirks & Leeuwenburgh, 2005). Abilities that depend upon muscle quality like strength, functional mobility, and balance are all key components for how people evaluate their self-rated health (SRH) and quality of life (QoL) (Ozcan et al., 2005; Sirola et al., 2010). Interestingly, SRH and QoL also serve as strong predictors for institutionalization, disability, and mortality for elderly populations (Marzetti & …

Robert Koch, Creation, And The Specificity Of Germs, Alan L. Gillen, Douglas Oliver, Frank Sherwin

Faculty Publications and Presentations

Microbiology is dominated by evolution today. Just look at any text, journal article, or the topics presented at professional scientific meetings. Darwin is dominant.

Microbiology is dominated by evolution today. Just look at any text, journal article, or the topics presented at professional scientific meetings. Darwin is dominant. Many argue that “nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution” (Dobzhansky 1973). But it was not always this way. In fact, a review of the major founders of microbiology has shown that they were creationists.1 We would argue that a better idea thanevolution and one of much …

Dna Barcoding Analyses Of White Spruce (Picea Glauca Var. Glauca) And Black Hills Spruce (Picea Glauca Var. Densata), Janessa Ann James

Capstone Research Projects

No abstract provided.

Bioassessment Of Fish And Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Communities Of Laurel Creek In Rowan County, Kentucky, Audrey M. Richter

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Science and Technology at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science by Audrey M. Richter on April 2, 2010.

Japanese Stiltgrass: An Invasive Plant On The Move, Emily S.J. Rauschert, Andrea N. Nord

Biological, Geological, and Environmental Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Section Abstracts: Biology With Microbiology And Molecular Biology

Virginia Journal of Science

Abstracts of the Biology with Microbiology and Molecular Biology Section for the 88th Annual Meeting for the Virginia Academy of Science, May 20-21, 2010, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA.

Corrections To The Paper "Phytoplankton Productivity In The Tidal Regions Of Four Chesapeake Bay (Usa) Tributaries." Virginia Journal Of Science. 2007 58(4): 191-204, By K. K. Nesius, H. G. Marshall, And T.A. Egerton

Virginia Journal of Science

Necessary corrections associated with the paper "Phytoplankton productivity in the tidal regions of four Chesapeake Bay (USA) tributaries", originally published in Virginia Journal of Science Volume 58, Number 4, pages 191-204, in 2007, by K.K. Nesius, H.G. Marshall, and T.A. Egerton.

Vascular Plants Of Adjacent Serpentine And Granite Outcrops On The Deer Isles, Maine, U.S.A, Nathaniel S. Pope, Tanner B. Harris, Nishanta Rajakaruna

Biological Sciences

We performed a comparative study of the vascular flora of a serpentine outcrop, Pine Hill, and that of a granite outcrop, Settlement Quarry, from Little Deer Isle and Deer Isle, respectively, Hancock County, Maine. We established four transects along a gradient from exposed to forested areas within each outcrop. Plants were recorded for presence and percent cover from circular plots along each transect. Soil and tissue samples were collected to examine soil-tissue elemental relations. One hundred thirty-two taxa were recorded from serpentine and 89 from granite. Fifty-seven taxa were shared by both sites. Species richness (α diversity) and diversity indices …

Distinct Pathways Mediate The Sorting Of Tail-Anchored Proteins To The Plastid Outer Envelope, Preetinder K. Dhanao, Lynn G.L. Richardson, Matthew D. Smith, Satinder K. Gidda, Matthew P.A. Henderson, David W. Andrews, Robert T. Mullen

Biology Faculty Publications

Background: Tail-anchored (TA) proteins are a distinct class of membrane proteins that are sorted post-translationally to various organelles and function in a number of important cellular processes, including redox reactions, vesicular trafficking and protein translocation. While the molecular targeting signals and pathways responsible for sorting TA proteins to their correct intracellular destinations in yeasts and mammals have begun to be characterized, relatively little is known about TA protein biogenesis in plant cells, especially for those sorted to the plastid outer envelope.

Methodology/Principal Findings: Here we investigated the biogenesis of three plastid TA proteins, including the 33-kDa and 34-kDa …

An Entrepreneurial Approach To Librarianship, Flora Shrode, Jennifer Duncan, Wendy Holliday

Library Faculty & Staff Publications

Librarians from Utah State University explain recent efforts to encourage subject librarians to take a more holistic view of their roles. We are shifting from a traditional emphasis primarily on collection development and refocusing on natural connections between collections, instruction, liaison, and reference service. The poster provides background about Utah State University’s situation and explains our approach to analyzing local needs and culture to inform development of a new organizational structure. We describe our vision of subject librarianship, the process by which we assessed librarians’ ideas and goals for performing as subject librarians, and the actions we are taking to …

Biology Of Cancer Class Metastasizes Knowledge, Chris Barbey, Madeline Connley, Ben Davis, Rachel Hightower, Jon Reeck, Caleb Sutherland, Cheryl L. Jorcyk

Service-Learning Program

Cancer, in all its forms, is a leading cause of death and serious disease. The pathology of cancer is very complicated. This combined with the fast pace of research and clinical innovation makes cancer biology a difficult topic, even for experts. As a consequence, patients who wish to gain a better understanding of cancer biology may find themselves stuck somewhere between the blog-a-sphere and technical journals. Cancer is a disease of miscommunication and confusion at the level of cellular signaling. In a sense, this theme of confusion extends to the experience of the patient. The body is in rebellion, perhaps …

Four New Species And Two New Records Of Polyplectropus From China (Trichoptera: Polycentropodidae), Hua Zhong, Lian-Fang Yang, John C. Morse

Publications

Four new species and 2 new records of the genus Polyplectropus Ulmer from China are described and illustrated. The new species include Polyplectropus cubitalis Zhong and Yang sp. nov., from Guizhou, Polyplectropus subteres Zhong and Yang sp. nov., from Jiangxi and Zhejiang, Polyplectropus tridentatus Zhong and Morse sp. nov., from Guangxi, and Polyplectropus tianmushanensis Zhong and Yang, sp. nov., from Zhejiang. Two species, Polyplectropus ahas Malicky and Chantaramongkol, 1993, and Polyplectropus anakgugur Malicky, 1995, are newly recorded from China, bringing the number of Chinese Polyplectropus species to 28. The newly recognized Polyplectropus anakgugur Group is probably monophyletic, as evidenced by …

Modulation Of L-Type Calcium Current By Gaba-B Receptor Activation In The Neonatal Rat Hippocampus, Jennifer Grace Bray

Dissertations (1934 -)

During the early postnatal period, the inhibitory neurotransmitter γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) facilitates current through voltage-dependent L-type calcium channels by activating metabotropic GABA_B receptors in the rat hippocampus. In the present study, the effects of the GABA_B receptor agonist baclofen on L-type currents were tested using whole-cell voltage clamp recording on neurons isolated from the superior region of hippocampi obtained from pups of various ages to determine the exact time course of L-type current facilitation. The facilitation of L-type current by GABA_B receptors is more prominent during the second week of development.

One developmental process that L-type current …

Section Abstracts: Natural History And Biodiversity

Virginia Journal of Science

Abstracts of the Natural History and Biodiversity Section for the 88th Annual Meeting of the Virginia Academy of Science, May 20-21, 2010, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA.

Mojave Applied Ecology Notes Spring 2010, Anna San, Donovan J. Craig, Lindsay P. Chiquoine, Scott R. Abella, E. Cayenne Engel, Christina L. Lund, Jessica E. Spencer, Edward P. Weber Ph.D, Jill E. Craig

Mojave Applied Ecology Notes

Seed removal rates of Sahara mustard by rodents and ants, Mojave Desert Network exotic invasive inventory, gypsum roadside disturbance restoration update, new paper out on post-fire plant establishment, UNLV establishes school of environmental and public affairs

Volume 03, Cheryl Peck, Charles Hoever, Longwood Theater Department, Brittany Anderson, J. Ervin Sheldon, Richard Hayden, Yuri Calustro, Candice Fleming, Rebecca Franklin, Ashley Yocum, Danielle M. Jagoda, Cristina M. Valdivieso, Jameka Jones, Amy Ellis, Ashley Maser, Erikk Shupp, Jamie Yurasits, Joshua Davis, Alexander Leonhart, Kenny Wolfe, Sally Meadows, J. Haley, Amy Jackson, Morgan Howard, Adrienne Heinbaugh, Melissa Dorton, Ciarra Stalker

Incite: The Journal of Undergraduate Scholarship

Introduction from Dean Dr. Charles Ross

Little Shop of Horrors by Longwood Theater Department

Who Has the Hottest Hotsauce in Farmville: A Quantitative Comparison of Sauces from Local Restaurants by Cheryl Peck and Charles Hoever

Precipitation Effects on the Growth of White Oaks and Virginia Pines on the Mt. Vernon Plantation by Brittany Anderson

Design and Synthesis of Novel Ion Binding Molecules for Self-Assembly and Sensing Applications by J. Ervin Sheldon

A Statistical Analysis of Algorithms for Playing SameGame by Richard Hayden

Intersecting Cylinders at Arbitrary Angles by Yuri Calustro

Putting a Foot in the Revolving Door: Strategies for Reducing …

Lessons Learned From Nature: The Sweet Way To Preserve Cells, Shhyam Moorthy

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

A River Palimpsest: The Interdisciplinary Value Of Water, Katie Norris

Honors Theses

Water is an invaluable natural resource to both human and ecological communities, and is currently threatened by global and local pollution and availability. Hypoxia, climate change and local issues all strain river systems to beyond repair. In light of this, communities and scientists must come together to understand the quality and value of natural resources, such as the Great Miami River, in order to inform policy, management and societal perceptions. The overall purpose of this thesis research project is to utilize interdisciplinary areas together to create a valuable, spatially lateral and chronological baseline picture of the Great Miami River. The …

Barcoding Of Arrow Worms (Phylum Chaetognatha) From Three Oceans: Genetic Diversity And Evolution Within An Enigmatic Phylum, Robert M. Jennings, Ann Bucklin, Annelies Pierrot-Bults

Biology Faculty Publication Series

Arrow worms (Phylum Chaetognatha) are abundant planktonic organisms and important predators in many food webs; yet, the classification and evolutionary relationships among chaetognath species remain poorly understood. A seemingly simple body plan is underlain by subtle variation in morphological details, obscuring the affinities of species within the phylum. Many species achieve near global distributions, spanning the same latitudinal bands in all ocean basins, while others present disjunct ranges, in some cases with the same species apparently found at both poles. To better understand how these complex evolutionary and geographic variables are reflected in the species makeup of chaetognaths, we analyze …

Probing The Catalytic Roles Of Arg548 And Gln552 In The Carboxyl Transferase Domain Of The Rhizobium Etli Pyruvate Carboxylase By Site-Directed Mutagenesis, Saowapa Duangpan, Sarawut Jitrapakdee, Abdussalam Adina-Zada, Lindsay Byrne, Tonya N. Zeczycki, Martin St. Maurice, W. Wallace Cleland, John C. Wallace, Paul V. Attwood

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

The roles of Arg548 and Gln552 residues in the active site of the carboxyl transferase domain of Rhizobium etli pyruvate carboxylase were investigated using site-directed mutagenesis. Mutation of Arg548 to alanine or glutamine resulted in the destabilization of the quaternary structure of the enzyme, suggesting that this residue has a structural role. Mutations R548K, Q552N, and Q552A resulted in a loss of the ability to catalyze pyruvate carboxylation, biotin-dependent decarboxylation of oxaloacetate, and the exchange of protons between pyruvate and water. These mutants retained the ability to catalyze reactions that occur at the active site of the biotin carboxylase domain, …

Funding Needed For Assessments Of Weed Biological Control, John L. Maron, Dean E. Pearson, Stephen M. Hovick, Walter P. Carson

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Scoping Out The Shorebirds Of Summer, Milan Bull

Wrack Lines

The best places to go birding along Connecticut's shoreline and the delightful avian life you'll find there, are featured. Illustrated lavishly with photos from Connecticut Audubon.

Adapting Biodegradable Oligo(Poly(Ethylene Glycol) Fumarate) Hydrogels For Pigment Epithelial Cell Encapsulation And Lens Regeneration, Mimi W. Zhang, Hansoo Park, Xuan Guo, Kenta Nakamura, Robert M. Raphael, F. Kurtis Kasper, Antonios G. Mikos, Panagiotis A. Tsonis

Biology Faculty Publications

This study investigated the encapsulation of newt iris pigment epithelial cells (PECs), which have the ability to regenerate a lens by trans-differentiation in vivo, within a biodegradable hydrogel of oligo(poly(ethylene glycol) fumarate) crosslinked with poly(ethylene glycol)-diacrylate. Hydrogel beads of initial diameter of 1mm were fabricated by a molding technique. The swelling ratio and degradation rate of the hydrogel beads decreased with increasing crosslinking ratios. Confocal microscopy confirmed the cytocompatibility of crosslinking hydrogel formulations as evidenced by the viability of an encapsulated model cell line within a crosslinked hydrogel bead. Hydrogel beads encapsulating iris PECs were also implanted into lentectomized newts …

The Genomics Education Partnership: Successful Integration Of Research Into Laboratory Classes At A Diverse Group Of Undergraduate Institutions, Christopher Shaffer, Wilson Leung, Jeremy Buhler, Elaine Mardis, Sarah C.R. Elgin, David Lopatto, Consuelo Alvarez, Cheryl Bailey, Daron Barnard, Satish Bhalla, Chitra Chandrasekaran, Vidya Chandrasekaran, Hui-Min Chung, Douglas Dorer, Chunguang Du, Todd Eckdahl, Jeff Poet, Donald Frohlich, Anya Goodman, Yuying Gosser, Charles Hauser, Laura Hoopes, Diana Johnson, Christopher Jones, Marian Kaehler, Nighat Kokan, Olga Kopp, Gary Kuleck, Gerard Mcneil, Robert Moss, Jennifer Myka, Alexis Nagengast, Robert Morris, Paul Overvoorde, Elizabeth Shoop, Susan Parrish, Kelynne Reed, Gloria Regisford, Dennis Revie, Anne Rosenwald, Kenneth Saville, Stephanie Schroeder, Mary Shaw, Gary Skuse, Christopher Smith, Mary Smith, Eric Spana, Mary Spratt, Joyce Stamm, Jeff Thompson, Matthew Wawersik, Barbara Wilson, James Youngblom

Biology Faculty Research

Genomics is not only essential for students to understand biology but also provides unprecedented opportunities for undergraduate research. The goal of the Genomics Education Partnership (GEP), a collaboration between a growing number of colleges and universities around the country and the Department of Biology and Genome Center of Washington University in St. Louis, is to provide such research opportunities. Using a versatile curriculum that has been adapted to many different class settings, GEP undergraduates undertake projects to bring draft-quality genomic sequence up to high quality and/or participate in the annotation of these sequences. GEP undergraduates have improved more than 2 …

Investigating Snps Flanking The D1s80 Locus In A Tamil Population From India, Kuppareddi Balamurugan, Robert S. Pomeroy, George Duncan, Martin Tracey

Biology Faculty Articles

D1S80 is a 16-bp variable number of tandem repeats minisatellite. We analyzed single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) flanking this locus in a Tamil population. Alleles ranged from 15 through 41 repeats, with alleles 18 and 24 being predominant with frequencies of 31% and 34.5%, respectively, suggesting a bimodal allelic distribution. All the 18-repeat alleles are associated with HinfI(+) and Fnu4HI(-) restriction site polymorphisms at the 5. and 3. ends, respectively. Allele 24 is associated with HinfI(-) and Fnu4HI(+). Of the alleles tested, 98.5% have a linkage of two specific SNP polymorphisms. If an allele is positive for …

Candida Albicans Adhesion And Biofilm Formation On Phosphated And Non-Phosphate Containing Poly(Methylmethacrylate) Polymers, Kathryn Elizabeth Ryan

Master's Theses (2009 -)

Denture-induced stomatitis is prevalent among prosthesis users, particularly the elderly and institutionalized where it has been estimated to be present in over 60-65% of denture wearers. Treatment of this clinical condition is problematic due to incomplete disinfection of the acrylic surface and rapid microbial re-colonization. Moreover, ingestion or aspiration of pathogens in denture plaque exposes the elderly and immunocompromised to unexpected infections.

Acrylic polymers have generally been used to replace missing teeth and periodontal tissues in edentulous or partially dentate patients. Currently, edentulous adults in the US population are common, with complete edentulism greater than 41% among Americans aged 65 …

Inter-Island Variability In Above And Belowground Plant Biomass In Interior Marshes On The Virginia Barrier Islands, Staci B. Blecha

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

The Virginia Coast Reserve's Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) site is of great interest because the barrier islands have been migrating, rapidly at times, and are exceptionally dynamic. The barrier islands have tidal saltwater marshes on the lagoon side and freshwater marshes on the island interiors. In these interior marshes on North Hog Island, South Smith Island, and North Parramore Island, salinity and depth to water table were measured to determine if these factors were influencing biomass and biomass allocation patterns in the marsh. Hog Island had the freshest interior marshes (0 and 0.7 ppm), and the most diverse (H'=0.84 …

Legal, Moral And Biological Implications Of Poaching And Illegal Animal Trafficking On An International Scale, Meghan A. Pastor

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

Poaching and animal trafficking is a global issue in the areas of biology, morality and politics. This paper will discuss the different areas of impact as well as consider options for the prevention and alleviation of this issue.