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Reactive Oxygen Species Production In Head Regeneration Of Planaria From Cadmium Exposure, Natalie Gonzalez

Graduate Student Dissertations, Theses, Capstones, and Portfolios

Exposure to cadmium, a pervasive neurotoxic chemical found in our environment, poses significant health risks, disrupting various physiological systems and fostering carcinogenesis. Commonly found in everyday items like cigarettes, batteries, and plastics, cadmium disrupts the equilibrium between reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and cellular repair mechanisms, culminating in oxidative stress and potential cell damage. In toxicological and pharmaceutical research, planarians offer valuable insight for understanding how exposure to chemicals akin to human scenarios can alter biological systems. This experiment addresses the effect cadmium chloride (CdCl₂) has on planarian regeneration and whether antioxidants can mitigate those adverse outcomes. Our …

Enhancement Of Favipiravir With Compound X In A Hamster Model Of Yellow Fever Virus Infection, Hunter Stanger

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Yellow fever virus (YFV) has long been a worldwide health concern, and recent outbreaks in South America and Africa have resulted in significant mortality. There is currently an effective vaccine to prevent infection, but there are no currently developed antiviral drugs to treat patients that have already contracted the disease. Because of this, an effective antiviral is needed to combat unanticipated cases or emergence in areas that have previously been unaffected by this virus. A drug called favipiravir has shown promising results previously. This compound acts as a nucleoside analog to halt the replication of the virus and stop infection. …

Identification Of The Phosphatase Nudt5 As A Target For The Treatment Of Triple Negative Breast Cancer, Jing Qian

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Abstract

Background: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most malignant subtype of breast cancer, characterized by the absence of estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) expression, as well as the lack of overexpression of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). Unlike ER-positive and HER2-positive tumors that can be treated with hormone therapy or HER2-targeted treatment, respectively, triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) poses a challenge with limited treatment alternatives for affected women. The currently FDA-approved systemic regimens for TNBC patients remain as conventional chemotherapy and PARP inhibitors (only applicable for a subset of BRCA-mutated TNBC patients). Consequently, our …

Acute Pain Prediction In Oral Cavity And Oropharyngeal Cancer Patients Receiving Radiation Therapy, Vivian Salama

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Oral-Cavity and oropharyngeal cancers (OC/OPC) are types of head and neck cancers that are increasing in incidence domestically. Radiation therapy (RT) is crucial in OC/OPC management. Pain is a common and challenging symptom for most patients during therapy, as nearly all patients undergoing locoregional RT in OC/OPC require analgesia for acute iatrogenic pain. Moreover, about 45% of long-term survivors report chronic pain, with more than 10% exhibiting severe chronic pain. Pain control is challenging due to the multifactorial clinical, molecular, and cellular etiology of cancer/therapy pain, as well as variation in pain assessment and the non-uniform management of pain between …

Biophysical Model Of Retraction Motor Neurons And Their Modification By Operant Conditioning, Maria Rasheed

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Operant conditioning (OC) is a form of associative learning in which an animal modifies its behavior based on the consequences that follow that behavior. Despite its ubiquity, the underlying mechanisms of OC are poorly understood. Insights into the mechanisms of OC can be obtained by studying Aplysia feeding behavior as it can be modified by OC. This behavior is mediated by a central pattern generator (CPG) network in the buccal ganglia that contains a relatively small number of neurons. This CPG generates rhythmic motor patterns (BMPs) that move food into the gut by closing a tongue-like structure (i.e., radula) during …

Syntaxin-3 Mediates Baseline And Stimulated Mucin Secretion, Brianne Wharton

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

There are two rates at which airway epithelial cells secrete mucin. The low baseline rate accounts for ciliary clearance, and the high stimulated rate obstructs airways in protection from helminths or in obstructive pulmonary diseases. The exocytosis of mucins occurs via the four-helix SNARE complex. The SNARE proteins contributing helices are the vesicle-SNARE VAMP, and the target-SNAREs SNAP and Syntaxin. Coiling of the complex fuses the granule and plasma membranes to release mucins into the extracellular space. The VAMP and SNAP isoforms mediating baseline and stimulated secretion are known, but the Syntaxin (Stx) isoform remains unknown.

Three candidate exocytic Stx, …

Chemical-Mediated Mate Attraction In Clover Root Curculio (Sitona Hispidulus F.), A Belowground Pest Of Forage Crops, Kristin Leutgeb

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Curculionid beetles are well known for their production of semiochemicals, including contact (e.g. cuticular hydrocarbons) and volatile pheromones that mediate conspecific attraction and mating. Clover root curculio (CRC; Sitona hispidulus) in particular is an emergent, soil-borne pest of significant concern to producers of alfalfa and other leguminous crops in the United States. Producers have few control options for CRC and a greater understanding of chemical-mediated attraction in this species can potentially improve the sustainability of its management. To examine which chemical cues are important for affecting the behavior of CRC and whether there are sex-based differences in response, I …

Exploring Novel Nutrient Acquisition Mechanisms For Maintaining Energy Metabolism In Toxoplasma Gondii, Melanie Key

All Dissertations

Toxoplasma gondii is an infectious intracellular parasite that establishes infection within various mammalian hosts, including humans. Toxoplasma infects approximately one-third of the global population, making it an impactful pathogen of study. T. gondii is the causative agent of toxoplasmosis, an opportunistic infection that causes severe illness or fatality in immunocompromised individuals or pregnant women. The parasite possesses a very effective invasion strategy, allowing it to cross different tissue types to disseminate infection across the placental and blood-brain barrier. Although there are a few treatments for acute toxoplasmosis, these drugs can produce adverse side effects. These options are not effective against …

Effects Of Humidity On Native And Non-Native Cavity Nesting Solitary Bees, Elleke Grace Kofford Manwill

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Invasive species are defined as those that are not native to an ecosystem but may cause harm to the environment or to human health. Osmia cornifrons, a species introduced to the United States, and Osmia lignaria, a native species, are cavity-nesting solitary bees. Although not officially classified as invasive, O. cornifrons presents competition for the niche that O. lignaria inhabits. O. cornifrons has established populations throughout the East Coast and the Pacific Northwest, while O. lignaria is found all throughout the contiguous United States. This interspecies difference in geographical range exists despite their similar temperature ranges. To determine …

Qualitative Assessment Of Human Embryonic- And Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Derived Neural Stem Cells Under Cgmp Methods, Michelle Hernandez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Neural stem cell therapies represent a promising tool for the development of regenerative medicine and are being tested in clinical trials for several neurological disorders. However, the clinical applicability of stem cell therapies is dependent on the implementation of current good manufacturing practices (cGMPs) to ensure the quality, safety, and consistency that stem cell products need to meet FDA regulatory requirements. As such, there is a need for a shift to xeno-free methodologies so experimental conditions are cGMP compliant. The purpose of this study is to test a GMP compatible production method to generate multipotent neural stem cells (NSCs) from …

Haloperidol Paradoxical Behavior Induced Cell Proliferation Through Pkb/Akt And Abolished By Mir-Let-7c, Mounira Morgem

Dissertations (2016-Present)

Haloperidol is a typical antipsychotic drug; it is widely used for people with various psychiatric conditions such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, and dementia. Despite its effectiveness in controlling delusions, hallucinations, agitation, and other disruptive behavioral symptoms in these psychiatric conditions, it has adverse side effects such as extrapyramidal manifestation and endocrinologic and metabolic changes. Initial evidence shows that haloperidol has antitumor properties in several cancer types by inhibiting cell proliferation and inducing apoptosis. However, other reports indicate that haloperidol promotes cell proliferation in other cells, raising concerns about its association with an increased risk of cancer which …

Revealing Nitrate Uptake And Dispersion Dynamics Using High-Frequency Sensors And Two-Dimensional Modeling In A Large River System, Amirreza Zarnaghsh, Michelle Kelly, Amy Burgin, Admin Husic

Michigan Tech Publications

Nitrate pollution of water bodies is a critical issue in many parts of the world because of its negative effects on aquatic ecosystem and human health. Effective management of pollution, such as the continuous or instantaneous release from point-sources, requires an understanding – with high spatial and temporal resolution – of how nitrate is dispersed and cycled within rivers. Nitrate sensing data show promise for this purpose, but their integration into numerical models is scarce; thus, questions remain regarding the necessary spatial grid size and temporal resolution required to resolve sensor readings. In this study, we developed an unsteady two-dimensional …

Connecting Genotype And Phenotype: Investigating The Functional Morphology And Molecular Architecture That Influences Craniofacial Divergence Using Lake Malawi Cichlid Fishes, Leah Delorenzo

All Dissertations

Connecting genotype and phenotype to better understand how species evolve has been a goal of evolutionary developmental biologists over the last 50 years. This dissertation aims to connect genotype and phenotype of the craniofacial skeleton within the adaptive radiation of Lake Malawi cichlids to fortify our understanding of the functional, genetic, and epigenetic factors that contribute to craniofacial divergence. I start with a functional approach using 2D geometric morphometrics to assess craniofacial shape across the Lake Malawi cichlid radiation to bolster our knowledge of the bone phenotypes that are important to niche specialization and are functionally relevant. Next, I use …

Spatiotemporal Gait Parameter Consistency Across Two Days Of Treadmill Walking In Stroke Survivors, Alejandro Aguirre Ramirez, Samantha N. Jeffcoat, Natalia Sanchez, Andrian Kuch

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Retraining impaired gait is essential in post-stroke recovery. This project aims to determine between day variability of spatiotemporal gait measures in treadmill walking post-stroke to differentiate between changes due to the intervention and measurement errors due to between day test-retest variability. Six individuals post-stroke performed a two-minute walk test at a self-selected speed (SSS) for two consecutive days. SSS was assessed through the six-minute walk test. Reflective markers were placed on anatomical landmarks (van den Bogert et al. 2013). The heel markers were used for step detection. We calculated spatiotemporal parameters: stride length, stride time, step length, stance time, and …

Exploring The Impact Of Subject Placement On Exam Questions​, Briana M. Craig, Jeremy L. Hsu

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Quizzes and exams are crucial elements of undergraduate biology courses; however, little research has been done exploring the importance of the phrasing used in the questions on these assessments. Question framing has the potential to impact student performance and sense of belonging greatly. In this study, we conducted an experiment where we created three versions of the exact same question except for the framing for the experimental scenarios. One version was written with self-referential framing using the term “you,” simulating the student conducting the experiment; another version used classmate-referential framing, placing one of their peers in the experiment; the third …

Regulation Of Embryonic Eye Regrowth In Xenopus Laevis, Dylan Guerin

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Regrowth of lost organs and tissues is an amazing ability that some animals possess. For regrowth to be considered full, the organism must regrow the organ or tissue to a state that is structurally and functionally similar to that which was lost. The ability of an organism to regrow lost or damaged tissue varies among animals, both in the mechanisms utilized to achieve regrowth, and in what body parts can be regrown. Potentially even closely related species can vary wildly in regenerative ability. Therefore, regenerative research can look to other tissues and organisms for direction in elucidating the mechanisms through …

Mixed Methods Approach To Assess ‘Placental Opioid-Enhancing Factor’ Activity Within ‘Alternative’ Health Contexts Of Human Maternal Placentophagy, Jacob C. White

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Rats with elevated opioid levels experience an even greater increase in pain threshold after placenta or amniotic fluid consumption via placental opioid-enhancing factor (POEF) in the afterbirth. POEF only enhances opioid hypoalgesia; it cannot produce hypoalgesia alone. Although the POEF molecule remains unidentified and its efficacy in humans is unknown, it could be a safe, novel pain treatment. People who consume placenta as an alternative postpartum health practice are ideal for testing POEF bioactivity. Though rat models show that bioactive POEF is highly sensitive, some forms of the practice in humans may conserve POEF.

This project is the first attempt …

Cellular Mechanisms Of Embryonic Eye Regrowth In Xenopus Laevis, Randolph L. Grell

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The African Clawed Frog, Xenopus laevis, has been an indispensable model organism for over 100 years in the study of embryogenesis and development. In recent years, this vertebrate model has emerged as a robust tool for deciphering the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying various modes of tissue, limb, and organ regeneration. In the context of eye repair, Xenopus offers a unique model, where the adult frog eye has limited regenerative capacity compared to its pre-metamorphic embryonic and tadpole forms, which exhibit a robust capacity for regrowth. Understanding the intricate molecular mechanisms that underlie this developmental shift in regrowth ability …

Biological And Environmental Factors Associated With The Autumn Migration Timing Of North American Raptors, Nora R. Honkomp

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Migration is an energetically expensive and risky event in the life cycles of many organisms, and migration impacts survival and reproductive success through direct and carry-over effects. The timing of migration departure from the summer breeding grounds is important for determining the probability of survival and physical condition upon arrival at wintering sites. Many internal and external factors contribute to departure timing. It is important to study these factors across species, populations, and individuals to determine which traits and conditions are most important for shaping departure timing and its variability. Improving our understanding of the factors that affect organisms’ phenological …

Nesting In Urban Areas Affects American Kestrel Home Range Size And Adult Female Health, Jessica Michele Taylor

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Urbanization is happening at an unprecedented rate, and wildlife must adapt or face population declines. American Kestrels inhabit urban areas, however, whether human-dominated landscapes impact kestrel space-use, survival and reproductive success is largely unknown. We monitored American Kestrel nest boxes along a gradient of urbanization, measured using impervious surface area (ISA), and deployed GPS tags on breeding adults to examine the relationship between urbanization, home range size, and adult and nestling health. Male kestrel home ranges were 9.14 times larger than female home ranges, and home range size decreased as ISA increased for both sexes (β = -1.96, SE = …

Survival Of Methanogens Desiccated On Mars Soil Simulants: Implications For Life On Mars, Lanee Knight

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Because of Mars’s chemical features, it can be studied in the search for life and is a significant figure in the study of astrobiology (McKay, 2010). Dr. Kral’s laboratory studies methanogens, microorganisms in the domain Archaea, as possible life forms on Mars. Since some methanogens can withstand harsh environmental conditions and emit methane as a waste product, the growth of these microorganisms can be used as an indicator of potential life in the Mars subsurface (Kral et al., 1998). In this research, four methanogens, Methanothermobacter wolfeii, Methanobacterium formicicum, Methanosarcina barkeri, and Methanococcus maripaludi were desiccated in the …

Growth Of Methanogens On Kaolinite, A Clay That Has Been Identified On Mars, Hailey Littrell

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Methanogens have been studied as a model for life on Mars for 28 years now in the Kral lab. The discovery of methane in the Martian atmosphere by ground-based and orbital observations as well as Curiosity Rover (Formisano, V. et al., Krasnopolsky, V.A. et al., Mumma, M.J. et al.) has added relevance to these types of studies. Methanogens were chosen due to their ability to live in harsh environments, very similar to the Martian terrain. In addition to methane in the atmosphere, phyllosilicate clays have also been identified. One of those clays is kaolinite. Kaolinite has been found to not …

Dispersal Movement And Overwintering Ecology Of A Cryptic Migratory Forest Owl, Mitchell Lee Pruitt

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Understanding species’ distributions and how a species uses its environment is a vital aspect of ecology and important for the development and implementation of conservation planning. In migratory species, with distinct breeding and nonbreeding ranges, understanding distributions is a complex endeavor. Nevertheless, evaluating movement behavior by linking seasonal distributions and identifying source areas is vital for understanding a species’ full annual cycle ecology. Understanding distributions is particularly important for predators, like birds of prey, that can exert top-down effects on community structure and ecosystem function through their influence on prey populations. Among raptors, owls are severely understudied in large part …

Research: Why Do It?, Tom Goodwin

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Foxo1 Inhibitor, As1842856, Induces Cell Cycle Arrest And Reverses Anticancer Drug-Induced Cytotoxicity In Osteosarcoma Cells, Antanay Hall

Theses (2016-Present)

Forkhead box class O (FOXO)-1 transcription factor controls cell proliferation, apoptosis, oxidative stress, and other cellular activities; FOXO1 has also been implicated in cell cycle regulation. This research project aims to determine the contribution of FOXO1 to cell cycle regulation and response to anticancer drug treatment in osteosarcoma. Osteosarcoma is the most common bone cancer, with most cases occurring in people younger than 30 years old. The study explores the impact of FOXO1 inhibitor AS1842856 on the cytotoxic effects of anticancer drugs in CCHOSD, Hos, and LM7 osteosarcoma (OGS) cell lines. Following chemical inhibition of FOXO1 and anticancer drug treatment, …

Experimental Analysis Of Mybl1, Vcpip1 And Ubxn2b In Triple Negative Breast Cancers, Fawaz Opeyemi Ibikunle

Theses (2016-Present)

The focus of our laboratory is to characterize triple negative breast cancers. In a previous study we identified six genes over-expressed in a subset of the cancers. MYBL1 was one of the genes. MYBL1 is a strong transcriptional activator responsible for regulation of genes associated with cell cycle signaling, differentiation and apoptosis, all processes that drive cancers. Because of MYBL1’s involvement in processes key to cancer pathogenesis, in an earlier study, we knocked down the MYBL1 gene in efforts to identify genes that were either directly or indirectly associating with the gene to affect the triple negative breast cancer processes. …

Altered Myocardial Lipid Regulation In Junctophilin-2-Associated Familial Cardiomyopathies, Satadru K Lahiri, Feng Jin, Yue Zhou, Ann P Quick, Carlos F Kramm, Meng C Wang, Xander Ht Wehrens

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Myocardial lipid metabolism is critical to normal heart function, whereas altered lipid regulation has been linked to cardiac diseases including cardiomyopathies. Genetic variants in the JPH2 gene can cause hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) and, in some cases, dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). In this study, we tested the hypothesis that JPH2 variants identified in patients with HCM and DCM, respectively, cause distinct alterations in myocardial lipid profiles. Echocardiography revealed clinically significant cardiac dysfunction in both knock-in mouse models of cardiomyopathy. Unbiased myocardial lipidomic analysis demonstrated significantly reduced levels of total unsaturated fatty acids, ceramides, and various phospholipids in both mice with HCM and …

The Causes And Consequences Of Behavioral Plasticity In Anti-Predatory Defense And Mate Choice In Tropical Butterflies, Sushant Potdar

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Behavioral plasticity, where individuals change their behaviors in response to varying environmental and social conditions, affects major evolutionary trajectories. But how individuals change these behaviors under certain social situations, and what the genetic causes and consequences of such behavioral changes are in response to social environments are yet to be fully understood. I address these questions in the context of anti-predatory behaviors (chapter 1), and mate choice (chapters 2, 3, 4) in tropical butterflies. In the context of anti-predatory behaviors, I found predator-specific behavioral changes in toxic Heliconius butterflies, suggesting variance in predation pressures and butterfly recognition of bird calls. …

Evaluation Of The Effect Of A Commercial Lippia Origanoides Essential Oil Extract On Salmonella Serovar Enteritidis As A Natural Alternative To Antibiotics In The Poultry Industry, Abdiel Atencio

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the present research was to evaluate the bactericidal activity of a microencapsulated Lippia origanoides essential oils (LOEOs) against Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) in an in vitro crop assay and in a prophylactic broiler chicken model using three low doses of the product: 75 ppm, 150 ppm and 300 ppm. Two trials of each assay were conducted. Day-of-hatch male Cobb-Vantress broiler chickens were randomly allotted to one of four groups: 1) positive control group; 2) 75 ppm LOEOs group; 3) 150 ppm LOEOs group; 4) 300 LOEOs group. Chicks were fed and watered ad libitum in heated brooder batteries …

Persistence And Evolution Of Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Following Initiation Of Highly Effective Modulator Therapy In Cystic Fibrosis, Catherine R. Armbruster, Yasmin K. Hilliam, Anna C. Zemke, Samar Atteih, Christopher Marshall, John Moore, Junu Koirala, Leah Krainz, Jordan R. Gaston, Stella E. Lee, Vaughn S. Cooper, Jennifer M. Bomberger

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Today, more than 90% of people with cystic fibrosis (pwCF) are eligible for the highly effective cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) modulator therapy called elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor (ETI) and its use is widespread. Given the drastic respiratory symptom improvement experienced by many post-ETI, clinical studies are already underway to reduce the number of respiratory therapies, including antibiotic regimens, that pwCF historically relied on to combat lung disease progression. Early studies suggest that bacterial burden in the lungs is reduced post-ETI, yet it is unknown how chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa populations are impacted by ETI. We found that pwCF remain infected throughout their …