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Medusan Morphospace: Phylogenetic Constraints, Biomechanical Solutions, And Ecological Consequences, John H. Costello, Sean Colin, John O. Dabiri

Arts & Sciences Faculty Publications

Medusae were the earliest animals to evolve muscle-powered swimming in the seas. Although medusae have achieved diverse and prominent ecological roles throughout the world's oceans, we argue that the primitive organization of cnidarian muscle tissue limits force production and, hence, the mechanical alternatives for swimming bell function. We use a recently developed model comparing the potential force production with the hydrodynamic requirements of jet propulsion, and conclude that jet production is possible only at relatively small bell diameters. In contrast, production of a more complex wake via what we term rowing propulsion permits much larger sizes but requires a different …

Qtl Analysis Of Ray Pattern In Caenorhabditis Elegans Recombinant Inbred Lines, Adam Joseph Guess

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Ray pattern is the most divergent morphological character among rhabditid nematodes. The ancestral ray pattern of Elegans group nematodes is commonly referred to as a 2(1)3+3 pattern, with rays 1 and 2 located anterior of the cloaca, ray 3 positioned at the cloaca, and rays 4-6 and 7-9 grouped in two clusters posterior of the cloaca. C. elegans males primarily exhibit the 2(1)3+3 pattern; however some isolates display variant patterns at a low frequency. The Hawaiian strain CB4856 exhibits a 3/3+3 pattern at a frequency of 0.09. In this pattern, ray 3 is located anterior of the cloaca in a …

Using Geographic Information Systems To Select Sites For Wetland Restoration In West Central Ohio's Agricultural Areas, Janice M. Hartkorn

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The Mississippi River Basin, includes a major part of Ohio has encountered increasing phosphorus and nitrogen loads from agricultural fields since the 1800's when intensive agriculture moved into the Midwest. Agriculture has drained ninety percent of Ohio's native wetlands. A portion of those drained wetlands can be restored to functional wetlands to intercept excess nutrients from non-productive or low yield agricultural fields to improve overall water quality. Little is known about finding potential restoration sites, partly because of the difficulty in locating sites capable of supporting successful restoration.

This study investigated the utility of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) as a …

Immunomodulation Of Human Skin Cells By Extracts Of The Scabies Mite, Sarcoptes Scabiei, Jeremi Stevan Mullins

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Sarcoptes scabiei infests its host through burrowing into the stratum corneum layer of skin. Keratinocytes and fibroblasts responding to the burrowing mite(s) and/or mite products produce inflammatory and immune activating cytokines and chemokines. The purpose of this study was to determine if an extract of S. scabiei can modulate cytokine and chemokine expression from keratinocytes and fibroblasts in vitro. Normal human keratinocytes and fibroblasts were exposed to an extract of S. scabiei var. canis with or without various pro-inflammatory stimuli. Cytokine and chemokine expression were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Scabies extract increased expression of interleukin-6 (IL-6), growth-related oncogene-α …

The Effects Of Nutritional Supplement, Mass Fx™, On Muscular Strength, Body Composition, And Blood Chemistries In Resistance Trained Adult Males, Patrick S. Dib

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The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a nutritional supplement, Mass FX, on muscular strength, body composition, and blood chemistries in resistance-trained adult males. Eight subjects, mean age 25 +/- 3.02 years, were randomly assigned to two groups (n=4). Each group was given either Mass FX or a Placebo in a double-blind manner to be taken orally for six weeks (4caps/day regardless of bodyweight). For the duration of the study, both groups were following the same training program and a diet customized to each subject's bodyweight in conjunction to the supplementation. Data were analyzed using Analysis …

Effects Of Forest Fragmentation And Honeysuckle Invasion On Forest Lepidoptera In Southwest Ohio, Annie Lynn Doyle

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Habitat loss and exotic species invasion is a rapidly growing threat facing forest animal communities worldwide. The goal of the current study is to assess the impact of forest fragmentation and the associated invasion of honeysuckle on immature tree-feeding Lepidoptera communities in southwestern Ohio. Caterpillar abundance, richness, and honeysuckle density were sampled along 100 meter transects conducted in ten forest fragments. Generalized linear models were developed to determine the effects of fragment area, landscape forest cover, and honeysuckle density on caterpillar abundance and richness. Caterpillar abundance and richness was positively related to landscape forest cover and fragment area. However, these …

The Community Structure Of Methanogenic, Methanotrophic, And Ammonia Oxidizing Bacteria In Vertical Flow Greenhouse Wetland Mesocosms Exposed To Pce, William Evan Gruner

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Chlorinated ethenes are among the top contaminants on the EPA National Priorities List due to their abundance in contaminated sites and their recalcitrant nature. These compounds, which are used in large scale degreasing and textile processes, are known liver and kidney toxins, and suspected carcinogens. Wetland ecosystems are capable of degrading PCE and its breakdown products TCE, DCE, and VC by providing anaerobic and aerobic growth conditions for microbes that express enzymes such as dehalogenases and monooxygenases with dual affinity for chlorinated solvents. Greenhouse mesocosms at Wright State University are used to mimic field conditions at a treatment wetland at …

Evaluation Of Aerial Cluster Sampling Of Double-Crested Cormorants On Aquaculture Ponds In Mississippi, Brian S. Dorr, Loren W. Burger Jr., Scott C. Barras

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Concern over increasing numbers of double-crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) and their impacts on channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) aquaculture has resulted in increased need for quantitative information to develop and evaluate depredation management efforts. We evaluated aerial surveys in a stratified cluster sampling (SCS) design to estimate and monitor abundance of cormorants on catfish aquaculture ponds in the Yazoo River Basin of Mississippi, USA (hereafter Yazoo Basin). Twice monthly abundance estimates and coefficient of variation during winter averaged 8,128 (n = 29, SE = 1,233) and 33% (n = 29, SE = 0.02), respectively. Counts of cormorants …

The Genome Sequence Of The Metal-Mobilizing, Extremely Thermoacidophilic Archaeon Metallosphaera Sedula Provides Insights Into Bioleaching-Associated Metabolism, Kathryne S. Auernik, Yukari Maezato, Paul H. Blum, Robert M. Kelly

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Despite their taxonomic description, not all members of the order Sulfolobales are capable of oxidizing

reduced sulfur species, which, in addition to iron oxidation, is a desirable trait of biomining microorganisms.

However, the complete genome sequence of the extremely thermoacidophilic archaeon Metallosphaera sedula

DSM 5348 (2.2 Mb, _2,300 open reading frames [ORFs]) provides insights into biologically catalyzed metal

sulfide oxidation. Comparative genomics was used to identify pathways and proteins involved (directly or

indirectly) with bioleaching. As expected, the M. sedula genome contains genes related to autotrophic carbon

fixation, metal tolerance, and adhesion. Also, terminal oxidase cluster organization indicates the presence …

Ecological Genomics: Understanding Gene And Genome Function In The Natural Environment, M. C. Ungerer, L. C. Johnson, M. A. Herman

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The field of ecological genomics seeks to understand the genetic mechanisms underlying responses of organisms to their natural environments. This is being achieved through the application of functional genomic approaches to identify and characterize genes with ecological and evolutionary relevance. By its very nature, ecological genomics is an interdisciplinary field. In this review, we consider the significance of this new area of study from both an ecological and genomic perspective using examples from the recent literature. We submit that by considering more fully an ecological context, researchers may gain additional insights into the underlying genetic basis of ecologically relevant phenotypic …

The Spectrum Of Mitochondrial Mutation Differs Across Species, Kristi L. Montooth, David M. Rand

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Mutations are ubiquitous, and many arise during the very process of replicating and transmitting genomes. This process is the source of the genetic variation that provides the raw material for both evolutionary novelty and human disease. Mutation rates are known to vary among nucleotides, across genomic regions, and between taxa. It is conventional wisdom that animal mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is one genomic region that has a particularly high mutation rate. Until recently, this high rate of mutation has been predominantly inferred from high levels of mitochondrial sequence divergence between species. However, the apparently simple process of mutation and sequence divergence …

Endogenous And Exogenous Control Of Ecosystem Function: N Cycling In Headwater Streams, H. M. Valett, S. A. Thomas, P. J. Mulholland, J. R. Webster, C. N. Dahm, C. S. Fellows, C. L. Crenshaw, C. G. Peterson

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Allochthonous inputs act as resource subsidies to many ecosystems, where they exert strong influences on metabolism and material cycling. At the same time, metabolic theory proposes endogenous thermal control independent of resource supply. To address the relative importance of exogenous and endogenous influences, we quantified spatial and temporal variation in ecosystem metabolism and nitrogen (N) uptake using seasonal releases of ¹⁵N as nitrate in six streams differing in riparian–stream interaction and metabolic character. Nitrate removal was quantified using a nutrient spiraling approach based on measurements of downstream decline in ¹⁵N flux. Respiration (R) and gross primary production (GPP) …

Genome-Wide Compensatory Changes Accompany Drug-Selected Mutations In The Plasmodium Falciparum Crt Gene, Hongying Jiang, Jigar J. Patel, Ming Yi, Jianbing Mu, Jinhui Ding, Robert Stephens, Roland A. Cooper, Michael T. Ferdig, Xin-Zhuan Su

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Mutations in PfCRT (Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine-resistant transporter), particularly the substitution at amino acid position 76, confer chloroquine (CQ) resistance in P. falciparum. Point mutations in the homolog of the mammalian multidrug resistance gene (pfmdr1) can also modulate the levels of CQ response. Moreover, parasites with the same pfcrt and pfmdr1 alleles exhibit a wide range of drug sensitivity, suggesting that additional genes contribute to levels of CQ resistance (CQR). Reemergence of CQ sensitive parasites after cessation of CQ use indicates that changes in PfCRT are deleterious to the parasite. Some CQR parasites, however, persist in the …

Oviposition Behavior Partitions Aquatic Landscapes Along Predation And Nutrient Gradients, C. A. Binckley, W. J. Resetarits Jr.

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

That individuals attempt to minimize the ratio of mortality risk/growth rate (μ/g) when foraging within individual habitat patches is well established. Do species partition among spatially discrete communities embedded in complex landscapes in a similar manner? We investigated how 3 ovipositing species (2 Hyla treefrogs and a hydrophilid beetle, Tropisternus lateralis) responded to simultaneous gradients of nutrients and predation risk. Species partitioned our experimental metacommunity primarily by reducing oviposition with fish. Tropisternus positively responded to increased nutrients, but the effect decreased with increasing risk, as predicted by μ/g theory. Use of fish habitats by Tropisternus was unrelated to breeding …

Swimming Dynamics And Propulsive Efficiency Of Squids Throughout Ontogeny, Ian K. Bartol, Paul S. Krueger, Joseph T. Thompson, William J. Stewart

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Synopsis Squids encounter vastly different flow regimes throughout ontogeny as they undergo critical morphological changes to their two locomotive systems: the fins and jet. Squid hatchlings (paralarvae) operate at low and intermediate Reynolds numbers (Re) and typically have rounded bodies, small fins, and relatively large funnel apertures whereas juveniles and adults operate at higher Re and generally have more streamlined bodies, larger fins, and relatively small funnel apertures. These morphological changes and varying flow conditions affect swimming performance in squids. To determine how swimming dynamics and propulsive efficiency change throughout ontogeny, digital particle image velocimetry (DPIV) and kinematic …

Historical Mammal Extinction On Christmas Island (Indian Ocean) Correlates With Introduced Infectious Disease, Kelly B. Wyatt, Paula F. Campos, M. Thomas P. Gilbert, Sergios-Orestis Kolokotronis, Wayne H. Hynes, Rob Desalle, Peter Daszak, Ross D.E. Macphee, Alex D. Greenwood

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

It is now widely accepted that novel infectious disease can be a leading cause of serious population decline and even outright extinction in some invertebrate and vertebrate groups (e. g., amphibians). In the case of mammals, however, there are still no well-corroborated instances of such diseases having caused or significantly contributed to the complete collapse of species. A case in point is the extinction of the endemic Christmas Island rat (Rattus macleari): although it has been argued that its disappearance ca. AD 1900 may have been partly or wholly caused by a pathogenic trypanosome carried by fleas hosted …

Modeling Canopy Photosynthesis Of A Scrub-Oak Ecosystem Under Elevated Co2, Lori Jones

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Rising atmospheric CO2 and the need to understand potential impacts on terrestrial ecosystems has become increasingly recognized. Models can play a beneficial part in this research to enhance understanding of ecosystem responses to changing conditions like elevated CO2. In this study, data from a long term elevated CO2 experiment in a native forested ecosystem in east central Florida were employed to assess the utility of a multi-layer canopy photosynthesis model as a tool to better understand the responses to elevated CO2 in this ecosystem. Model results compared satisfactorily with the canopy gas exchange measurements in this ecosystem for the period …

Amp-Activated Protein Kinase Is Involved In Hormone-Induced Mouse Oocyte Meiotic Maturation In Vitro, Jing Chen, Stephen M. Downs

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

We have previously shown that AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) can induce the resumption of meiosis in mouse oocytes maintained in meiotic arrest in vitro. The present study was carried out to determine whether AMPK activation is involved in hormone-induced maturation. Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and the EGF-like peptide, amphiregulin (AR), are potent inducers of maturation in cumulus cell-enclosed oocytes (CEO). Within 3 h of FSH treatment, phospho-acetyl CoA carboxylase (ACC) levels were increased in germinal vesicle (GV)-stage oocytes when compared to non-stimulated controls and remained elevated throughout 9 h of culture, indicating AMPK activation. A similar response to AR was observed …

Effect Of Ethanol On Microbial Community Structure And Function During Natural Attenuation Of Benzene, Toluene, And O-Xylene In A Sulfate-Reducing Aquifer, Kevin Feris, Doug Mackay, Nick De Sieyes, Irina Chakraborty, Murray Einarson, Krassimira R. Hristova, Kate M. Scow

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Ethanol (EtOH) is a commonly used fuel oxygenate in reformulated gasoline and is an alternative fuel and fuel supplement. Effects of EtOH release on aquifer microbial ecology and geochemistry have not been well characterized in situ. We performed a controlled field release of petroleum constituents (benzene (B), toluene (T), o-xylene (o-X) at ∼1–3 mg/L each) with and without EtOH (∼500 mg/L). Mixed linear modeling (MLM) assessed effects on the microbial ecology of a naturally sulfidic aquifer and how the microbial community affected B, T, and o-X plume lengths and aquifer geochemistry. Changes in microbial community structure …

Mojave Applied Ecology Notes Winter 2008, Scott R. Abella, E. Cayenne Engel, Jill E. Craig

Mojave Applied Ecology Notes

Mojave Desert collaborative projects, fire history in Spring Mountains, Northshore Road rehabilitation, wildfires and invasive plants in American deserts conference, weed sentry surveys

Influence Of Fluvial Geomorphology On Fish Assemblage Structure Within An Agriculturally Impacted Watershed, Jeffrey D. Fore

Masters Theses

Warmwater stream fish assemblages are often considered limited by instream habitat availability. Thus, much current research has focused on determining habitat features that limit the abundance and persistence of stream fishes. These studies provide valuable information to managers who are concerned with increasing species abundance and persistence, but they may not provide information on the processes structuring the stream fish community. To address this issue, we hypothesized that stream geomorphology differed among stream sizes and types (i.e., channelized vs. unchannelized streams) and that the fish assemblages associated with each geomorphic type would be unique. Fish assemblages were sampled and geomorphic …

Long-Term Functional Trait Dynamics In Abandoned Agricultural Fields, Timothy A. Rye

Masters Theses

A fundamental question of plant succession is whether species within different successional stages differ in terms of functional traits as changes in community-level traits reflect changes in plant strategies over time. Although there are many studies that focus on that question, researchers have not studied the long-term dynamics of those traits within plant communities in depth. We used data from a 49-year study of old-field succession (the Buell-Small Succession Study) to assess the dynamics of important functional traits (height, seed mass, specific leaf area) and compared their dynamics among life forms and between native and non-native species. We assessed communitylevel …

Foraging Site Selection In Prairie Kingsnakes (Lampropeltis C. Calligaster): An Experimental Approach, Angela M. Fornell

Masters Theses

A critical component to a predator’s survival is the choice of foraging sites that yield enough predatory success to meet energetic demands. To elucidate cues used to select foraging sites, I examined foraging site selection in Prairie Kingsnakes (Lampropeltis c. calligaster), a generalist species whose foraging mode is flexible. My objectives were to determine: the pattern of foraging site selection; the importance of certain cues that kingsnakes use when selecting foraging sites; and, whether or not kingsnakes adjust their foraging patterns in response to alterations in the microhabitat. I tested subjects in a large experimental arena under several treatment conditions …

Terrestrial Macrofungi Of Old-Growth Prairie Groves, Vincent P. Hustad

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to evaluate and contrast the communities of terrestrial macrofungi of Brownfield and Trelease Woods, Champaign Co., IL; old-growth prairie groves isolated for> 120 years. This study represents the first known analysis of fungal communities in old-growth prairie grove ecosystems in the Midwestern United States, and provides an excellent opportunity to characterize the fungal biodiversity of established old-growth reference communities for comparisons with other sites, both local and distant. Fungal communities were sampled during the fall fruiting seasons of 2006 and 2007 using a plot frequency study of fungal abundance. Several estimators of species richness …

Correlating Phytoplankton Assemblages With Water Quality In Illinois Lakes And Reservoirs: Validating Models Based On Historical Data, Jason D. Allen

Masters Theses

In the last two decades management and monitoring efforts in freshwater systems has shifted from point source pollutants to non-point source pollutants and environmental modification. Long term, large scale sampling projects necessitated by such a shift often are infeasible due to logistical, cost, and time constraints.

In recent years fish and benthic macroinvertebrate indices of biological integrity (IBI's) have been used to survey the quality of flowing (lotic) water systems, which have drastically reduced sampling time and facilitated large scale monitoring projects. However, it is unlikely that these could be adapted to lentic systems. This study was undertaken in an …

The Impact Of Climate On The Leaf Characteristics Of Genus Fraxinus, Brian W. Craven

Masters Theses

Fraxinus (ash) has six species across eastern North America, five of which are found in Illinois (F. americana, F. pennsylvanica, F. nigra, F. quadrangulata, F. profimda). It is also threatened by the emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis) (BAB). Are climate differences across a north-south distance of 600 km great enough to create differences in the morphological characteristics of Fraxinus species? Studying latitudinal variation in the species of Fraxinus would reveal the impact of climate on the leaf characteristics of a genus of trees which extend over a considerable portion of the continent. The objectives of this study were to determine …

Leptodactylus Cunicularius Sazima And Bokermann Rabbit-Burrow Frog, W. R. Heyer, M. M. Heyer, Rafael O. De Sá

Biology Faculty Publications

Adult Leptodactylus cunicularius are moderately small. The head is longer than wide and the hind limbs are long (Table 1; Heyer and Thompson 2000 provided definitions of adult size and leg length categories for Leptodactylus). Male vocal sacs are internal, not externally expanded. The snout is protruding, not sexually dimorphic. Male forearms are not hypertrophied and males lack asperities on the thumbs and chest. The dorsum is variegated with small, often confluent, spots and blotches. There is a very thin interrupted mid-dorsal light stripe (pinstripe). Usually, there is a noticeable light, irregular, elongate, mid-dorsal blotch in the scapular region. …

Is The Amphibian Tree Of Life Really Fatally Flawed?, Darrel R. Frost, Taran Grant, Julian Faivovich, Raoul H. Bain, Alexander Haas, Celio F.B. Haddad, Rafael O. De Sá, Et Al.

Biology Faculty Publications

Wiens (2007, Q. Rev. Biol. 82, 55–56) recently published a severe critique of Frost et al.'s (2006, Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist. 297, 1–370) monographic study of amphibian systematics, concluding that it is “a disaster” and recommending that readers “simply ignore this study”. Beyond the hyperbole, Wiens raised four general objections that he regarded as “fatal flaws”: (1) the sampling design was insufficient for the generic changes made and taxonomic changes were made without including all type species; (2) the nuclear gene most commonly used in amphibian phylogenetics, RAG-1, was not included, nor were the morphological characters that had justified …

Evaluation Of The Oxalate-Consuming Activities Of Probiotic Microorganisms, Alexandra E.C. Baluka

Masters Theses

This study identifies the oxalate-consuming capabilities of mixtures of probiotic microorganisms, present as commercial probiotics, as well as in seventeen pure cultures of probiotic microorganisms. Probiotics are sold commercially as powders, tablets, and supplements of live microorganisms that, when taken in large amounts, confer a health benefit to the host. Increased levels of urinary oxalate coincide with the formation of kidney stones, so this study sought to identify organisms capable of oxalate consumption that could potentially be manufactured for those suffering from calcium oxalate kidney stones. This study determined that consumption of oxalate was not directly tied to active growth …

Mating Bias In The Red Imported Fire Ant, Solenopsis Invicta, Kendra Carroll

Masters Theses

The two social forms in the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, are believed to be governed by the expression of one specific gene. This gene, known as Gp-9, is responsible for the production of general protein-9, thought to be a pheromone binding protein. Among the social aspects thought to be controlled by this locus is reproduction. Many aspects of breeding within and between the two colonial forms have been investigated over the past years since in introduction of this species to the United States. In this study, several features of the currently accepted model were examined. Newlymated queens were …