Digital Commons Network^™

Quantifying The Effect Of Disturbance On Native Mojave Desert Shrubs, Tamara J. Wynne

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Disturbance can come in many different forms. In our studies, we looked at the impact of a solar photovoltaic facility on native plants growing inside and outside of the facility, alteration in precipitation (simulated) on four native shrubs and the impact of applying supplemental water as a function of volume and frequency to establish native shrubs such as might occur at restoration sites. Disturbance is becoming a more common phenomenon in many ecosystems throughout the world, increasing the need for studies that quantify the impact at the plant and ecosystem level. Each research project revealed different plant responses, such as …

A Drought-Tolerant Nitrogen-Fixing Symbiont For Sustainable Soybean Production, Christian James Peterson

Biology Dissertations - Archive

Bradyrhizobia are an ideal model organism to study plant-microbe interactions due to dual lifestyles as free-living soil organisms and as endosymbionts for valuable cropping systems in agriculture. Farmers have been utilizing the Soybean-Bradyrhizobium japonicum mutualism for decades to revitalize marginal soils, increase yields, and establish a regenerative approach to farming by mitigating the use of synthetic nitrogenous fertilizers. The largest impediment to bio-fertilizer success is desiccation (e.g., drought) stress before the symbiosis can be established. Due to climate change, fluctuating high temperatures and drought occur seasonally in many growing regions and are becoming a growing concern for modern agriculture. Thus, …

Sequence-Based Bioinformatics Approaches To Predict Virus–Host Relationships In Archaea And Eukaryotes, Yingshan Li

School of Computing: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Viral metagenomics is independent of lab culturing and capable of investigating viromes of virtually any given environmental niches. While numerous sequences of viral genomes have been assembled from metagenomic studies over the past years, the natural hosts for the majority of these viral contigs have not been determined. Different computational approaches have been developed to predict hosts of bacteria phages. Nevertheless, little progress has been made in the virus-host prediction, especially for viruses that infect eukaryotes and archaea. In this study, by analyzing all documented viruses with known eukaryotic and archaeal hosts, we assessed the predictive power of four computational …

Taxonomic Species Recognition Should Be Consistent, Stephen James O'Brien, Shu-Jin Luo

Biology Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

(R2023) Analysis Of The Auto-Oscillation Of A Perturbed Sir Epidemiological Model, Seyive J. Degbo, Guy A. Degla

Applications and Applied Mathematics: An International Journal (AAM)

In this paper, we study a class of compatimental epidemiological models consisting of Susceptible, Infected, and Removed (SIR) individuals with a perturbation factor or exterior effects such as noise, climate change, pollution, etc. We prove the existence and uniqueness of a limit cycle confined in a nonempty closed and convex set by relying on a recent result of Lobanova and Sadovskii. Moreover, we study the existence of Hopf and Bogdanov-Takens bifurcations by applying respectively Poincare-Andronov-Hopf bifurcation theorem and Bogdanov-Takens theorem. Eventually, using Scilab, we illustrate the validity of our results with numerical simulations and also interpret them.

Med12 Is A Critical Regulator Of Neural Crest Lineage And Nervous System Myelination, Fatma Betul Aksoy Yasar

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

The Mediator complex (MED) is a multi-subunit protein complex integral to the eukaryotic transcription machinery. MED12 is a Cdk8- regulatory kinase module subunit directly implicated in human disease and is genetically altered in neurological disease and cancer. Numerous attempts at generating an in vivo system to study the role of Med12 failed due to embryonic lethality associated with germline or developmental disruption of Med12 gene. To understand the cellular and molecular processes associated with its role in disease, we generated multiple mouse models with targeted depletion of MED12 in distinct cellular lineages. Our genetically engineered models with induced and conditional …

Bobcat Identification, Abundance, And Behavior At Road Mitigation Structures In South Texas, Victoria Hanley

Theses and Dissertations

Highways in South Texas fragment the landscape and result in high road mortality rates for the endangered US ocelot (Leopardus pardalis). In response, the Texas Department of Transportation constructed nine wildlife crossing structures (WCS) on Farm-to-Market (FM) 106 which adjoins Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge in Cameron County, Texas. With ocelots being rare and elusive, bobcats (Lynx rufus) are often used as a surrogate species to study felid behavior at road mitigation structures in South Texas. Bobcats have unique markings which allow them to be individually identified. Three methods of individual identification of bobcats using camera …

Hunter-Gatherers In Context: Hadzabe People And Early Nutrition Transition, Trevor Pollom

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The current study utilizes a mixed-methods approach to investigate the processes that influence landcover change and nutrition transitions in the Lake Eyasi Basin area of Northern Tanzania. In doing so, it provides unique insights into the behavior and biology of Hadzabe foragers living in the Yaeda Valley during the early stages of nutrition transition and provides much needed context for scientific literature that has been derived from this region. The current study answers the following questions: 1) How can historical and ethnographic maps, combined with present-day landcover classifications, inform our understanding of the people(s), spaces, and places of Lake Eyasi? …

Nutrient Recovery From Wastewater By A Consortium Of Algae Species For Biofuel Production, Edgardo Ayala

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Current energy sources are predominantly petroleum-based and their use increases greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As the global population grows, and along with it the demand for energy, there is a need to further develop renewable energy sources to avoid the effects of increasing atmospheric CO₂ concentrations on the climate. Biofuels, a renewable energy source, have gained significant interest as a replacement for petroleum-based fuels due to their environmental benefits and carbon neutrality. Biofuels are expected to make up 9.0% of the total fuel consumption in the U.S. by 2040, up from 7.3% in 2019 [1]. Currently, terrestrial crop-based biofuels …

Understanding And Mitigating The Effects Of Artificial Light On Bats And Nocturnal Arthropods In Grand Teton National Park, Hunter Cole

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Bat and insect populations are at risk globally, and identifying factors that may influence bat and insect populations alongside mitigation techniques for anthropogenic factors that may negatively influence these taxa will be crucial for their conservation. To identify landscape characteristics that influence bats throughout Grand Teton National Park, we placed passive acoustic monitors throughout the park in areas with different microhabitat characteristics to identify factors that influence activity. Additionally, we developed a R package, `EcoCountHelper`, to assist wildlife managers in analyzing ecological count data similar to our bat monitoring data. As a demonstration of the package, we conducted a GLMM-based …

Survey For Usage Of And Interest In Personalized Nutrition As A Possible Health Approach, Kimberly Garrett

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Dietary factors can lead to chronic diseases and impact certain health factors such as sleep and mood. Personalized nutrition is based on an individual’s phenotype and genotype to meet specific dietary needs. This approach could be an intervention to benefit an individual’s health. This study surveyed a population to analyze the population’s view on and usage of personalized nutrition. The use of personalized nutrition was minimal, but there was interest within the population. In addition, a relationship between health and mood was found. However, the sample size was a limiting factor for this study. Future directions could include studying why …

Landscape Genomics Of The Tussock Cottongrass (Eriophorum Vaginatum) And The Dwarf Birch (Betula Nana) In North Central Alaska, Elizabeth Stunz

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Global climate change has resulted in geographic range shifts of flora and fauna at a global scale. Extreme environments, like the Arctic, are seeing some of the most pronounced changes. This region covers 14% of the Earthâ??s land area, and while many arctic species are widespread, understanding ecotypic variation at the genomic level will be important for elucidating how range shifts will affect ecological processes. Increase in shrub cover is a major effect of ongoing climate change in arctic tundra ecosystems. The relative increases in abundance and cover of shrub species such as birch, willow, and alder (Betula, Salix, and …

Wildlife Road Mortality Patterns In South Texas And Survey Methodology Improvement, Bradley E. Beer

Theses and Dissertations

Mortalities of wildlife caused by collisions with vehicles along roads are increasing in prevalence, threatening the existence of various species and populations. A better understanding of how mortalities change in response to natural and anthropogenic variables and efficient methods of obtaining mortality data are essential to mitigating such mortalities. This thesis investigates several key elements to improving road mortality surveys in south Texas. First, it was found that road mortality survey counts did not change under a pandemic-related lockdown and that 2 mortality survey observers detect more mortalities than 1. Analysis of brown pelican groundings on Texas State Highway 48 …

The Molecular Evolution Of Insect Opsin Genes, Maria Jose Cardenas Muedano

Theses and Dissertations

Opsins are part of the superfamily of G-coupled receptor proteins and together with chromophores, are responsible for initiating the signal transduction cascade responsible for animal vision. Since opsins have a critical role on visual perception these genes are crucial for a myriad of adaptive traits and behaviors and should show diverse signs of natural selection at the molecular level. Understanding the evolution of opsins across the wide diversity of insect groups will allow us to better understand the evolutionary pressure on insect opsins and serve as a model for both other gene systems and other taxonomic groups of animals that …

Foxo Factors Regulate The Expression Of Canonical Wnt Target Genes In A Set Of Basal-Like Breast And Glioblastoma Multiforme Cancer Cell Lines, Shania Pintor

Theses and Dissertations

Basal-like breast cancer (BBC) and Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) each express stem gene expression signatures which are partly driven by FOXO transcription factors. Preliminary data from Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) with RNA Seq. data indicated that a set of WNT target genes including LEF1, and TCF7 were robustly induced after 48-hours of AS1842856 (FOXO1 inhibitor) treatment. These same genes were also induced in GBM cell lines U87MG, LN18, LN229, A172, and DBTRG upon treatment with AS1842856. In contrast to FOXO1 inhibition, RNAi targeting of FOXO1, led to reduced LEF1, and TCF7 gene expression in BT549 and U87MG …

Effects Of Disturbance (Mowing) On Florivory And Floral Defenses In Solanum Elaeagnifolium, A Noxious And Worldwide Invasive Weed, Alejandro Rafael Vasquez Marcano

Theses and Dissertations

Chapter 1: Literature Review- In this literature review we have examined weed management as it concerns urban and agricultural ecosystems, as well as the need for mowing assessments as it relates to floral traits and defense against herbivory.

Chapter 2: Experiments- In the experiments we examined the role of mowing on floral growth traits, floral defense traits, and their effect on Manduca sexta specialist herbivores.

Chapter 3: Results- In the results we found SLN flowers to have larger diameters than unmowed flowers; however, flower mass was in line with our predictions as unmowed flowers were heavier in high mowing frequency …

Potential Fitness Trade-Offs Of Elevated Esterase Activity Associated With Insecticide Resistance In The Mosquito Culex Quinquefasciatus, Timothy Schulte

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

One of the current major issues in the control of vector-borne disease is resistance to insecticides. Resistance to one or more insecticides has appeared in over 580 different arthropod species. Widespread resistance has led to the field of Insecticide Resistance Management (IRM). The goal of IRM is to develop insecticide-use strategies that prevent or slow down the evolution of resistance. Computer models have shown that more effective IRM strategies rely on the assumption that resistance carries a fitness cost in the absence of insecticide use.

In the mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus resistance to certain organophosphate insecticides is caused by an increased …

Importance Of The Microhabitat And Microclimate Conditions In The Northern Gray-Cheeked Salamander (Plethodon Montanus) Across An Elevation Gradient, Trevor Chapman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The southern Appalachian Mountains have among the highest salamander diversity in the world, largely due to local speciation in the family Plethodontidae. Plethodontid salamanders (i.e., lungless salamanders) are particularly sensitive to habitat climate conditions due to their reliance on cutaneous respiration, and their immediate environmental conditions (microhabitat) likely influence their dispersion and activity more than the large-scale atmospheric conditions. The Northern Gray-cheeked salamander (Plethodon montanus) is restricted to high elevations in the Appalachian Mountains. Our goal was to investigate the relationship between P. montanus and its microhabitat by examining behavioral preference for climatic conditions, characterizing the microclimate with …

The Effects Of Tubulin Post-Translational Modifications On The Flagellar Motility Of Trypanosoma Brucei, Katherine Wentworth

All Theses

Trypanosoma brucei is a parasitic kinetoplastid that causes African trypanosomiasis and is transmitted to a mammalian host by the tsetse fly (Glossina spp.). T. brucei relies on its flagellar motility to carry out its morphological changes from the procyclic form (predominant in the fly vector) to the bloodstream form (infectious form in mammals) and navigate the bloodstream of its host. The driving structure within the flagellum is the axoneme, which is composed of microtubules and dynein motor proteins. The tubulin code hypothesis suggests that cells regulate microtubule motor protein activity through post-translational modifications (PTMs) of alpha and beta …

Context And Content Of Teaching Conversations: Exploring How To Promote Sharing Of Innovative Teaching Knowledge Between Science Faculty, A. Kelly Lane, Brittnee Earl, Stephanie Feola, Jennifer E. Lewis, Jacob D. Mcalpin, Karl Mertens, Susan E. Shadle, John Skvoretz, John P. Ziker, Marilyne Stains, Brian A. Couch, Luanna B. Prevost

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: Change strategies may leverage interpersonal relationships and conversations to spread teaching innovations among science faculty. Knowledge sharing refers to the process by which individuals transfer information and thereby spread innovative ideas within an organization. We use knowledge sharing as a lens for identifying factors that encourage productive teaching-related conversations between individuals, characterizing the context and content of these discussions, and understanding how peer interactions may shape instructional practices. In this study, we interview 19 science faculty using innovative teaching practices about the teaching-focused conversations they have with different discussion partners.

Results: This qualitative study describes characteristics of …

Late Quaternary Biotic Homogenization Of North American Mammalian Faunas, Danielle Fraser, Amelia Villaseñor, Anikó B. Tóth, Meghan A. Balk, Jussi T. Eronen, W. Andrew Barr, A. K. Behrensmeyer, Matt Davis, Andrew Du, J. Tyler Faith, Gary R. Graves, Nicholas J. Gotelli, Advait M. Jukar, Cindy V. Looy, Brian J. Mcgill, Joshua H. Miller, Silvia Pineda-Munoz, Richard Potts, Alex B. Shupinski, Laura C. Soul, S. Kathleen Lyons

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Biotic homogenization—increasing similarity of species composition among ecological communities—has been linked to anthropogenic processes operating over the last century. Fossil evidence, however, suggests that humans have had impacts on ecosystems for millennia. We quantify biotic homogenization of North American mammalian assemblages during the late Pleistocene through Holocene (~30,000 ybp to recent), a timespan encompassing increased evidence of humans on the landscape (~20,000–14,000 ybp). From ~10,000 ybp to recent, assemblages became significantly more homogenous (>100% increase in Jaccard similarity), a pattern that cannot be explained by changes in fossil record sampling. Homogenization was most pronounced among mammals larger than 1 …

Micrornas Contribute To The Host Response To Coxiella Burnetii, Madhur Sachan, Katelynn Brann, Daniel E. Voth, Rahul Raghavan

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a class of small non-coding RNAs, are critical to gene regulation in eukaryotes. They are involved in modulating a variety of physiological processes, including the host response to intracellular infections. Little is known about miRNA functions during infection by Coxiella burnetii, the causative agent of human Q fever. This bacterial pathogen establishes a large replicative vacuole within macrophages by manipulating host processes such as apoptosis and autophagy. We investigated miRNA expression in C. burnetii-infected macrophages and identified several miRNAs that were down- or up-regulated during infection. We further explored the functions of miR-143-3p, an miRNA whose …

Serologic Surveillance For Sars-Cov-2 Infection Among Wild Rodents, Europe, Vincent Bourret, Lara Dutra, Hussein Alburkat, Sanna Mäki, Ella Lintunen, Marine Wasniewski, Ravi Kant, Maciej Grzybek, Vinaya Venkat, Hayder Asad, Julien Pradel, Marie Bouilloud, Herwig Leirs, Valeria Carolina Colombo, Vincent Sluydts, Peter Stuart, Andrew Mcmanus, Jana A. Eccard, Jasmin Firozpoor, Christian Imholt, Joanna Nowicka, Aleksander Goll, Nathan Ranc, Guillaume Castel, Nathalie Charbonnel, Tarja Sironen

Publications

We report results from serologic surveillance for exposure to SARS-CoV-2 among 1,237 wild rodents and small mammals across Europe. All samples were negative, with the possible exception of 1. Despite suspected potential for human-to-rodent spillover, no evidence of widespread SARS-CoV-2 circulation in rodent populations has been reported to date.

Esitämme tulokset serologisesta tutkimuksesta, jossa seulottiin SARS-CoV-2 tartuntojen varalta 1,237 luonnonvaraista jyrsijää ja piennisäkästä eri puolilta Eurooppaa. Kaikki näytteet olivat negatiivisia, yhtä näytettä lukuun ottamatta. SARS-CoV-2:n läikkymisen ihmisistä jyrsijöihin on arveltu olevan mahdollista, mutta todisteet viruksen laajamittaisesta leviämisestä jyrsijäpopulaatioissa puuttuvat.

Insectdisease: Programmatic Access To The Ecological Database Of The World’S Insect Pathogens, Tad Dallas, Colin J. Carlson, Patrick R. Stephens, Sadie J. Ryan, David W. Onstad

Faculty Publications

Curated databases of species interactions are instrumental to exploring and understanding the spatial distribution of species and their biotic interactions. In the process of conducting such projects, data development and curation efforts may give rise to a data product with utility beyond the scope of the original work, but which becomes inaccessible over time. Data describing insect host–pathogen interactions are fairly rare, and should thus be preserved and curated with appropriate metadata. Here, we introduce the insectDisease R package, a mechanism for curating, updating and distributing data from the Ecological Database of the World's Insect Pathogens, a database of insect …

Recombinant Simian Varicella Virus-Simian Immunodeficiency Virus Vaccine Induces T And B Cell Functions And Provides Partial Protection Against Repeated Mucosal Siv Challenges In Rhesus Macaques, Bapi Pahar, Wayne Gray, Marissa Fahlberg, Brooke Grasperge, Meredith Hunter, Arpita Das, Christopher Mabee, Pyone Pyone Aye, Faith Schiro, Krystle Hensley, Aneeka Ratnayake, Kelly Goff, Celia Labranche, Xiaoying Shen, Georgia D. Tomaras, C. Todd Demarco, David Montefiori, Patricia Kissinger, Preston A. Marx

Faculty and Student Publications

HIV vaccine mediated efficacy, using an expanded live attenuated recombinant varicella virus-vectored SIV rSVV-SIVgag/env vaccine prime with adjuvanted SIV-Env and SIV-Gag protein boosts, was evaluated in a female rhesus macaques (RM) model against repeated intravaginal SIV challenges. Vaccination induced anti-SIV IgG responses and neutralizing antibodies were found in all vaccinated RMs. Three of the eight vaccinated RM remained uninfected (vaccinated and protected, VP) after 13 repeated challenges with the pathogenic SIVmac251-CX-1. The remaining five vaccinated and infected (VI) macaques had significantly reduced plasma viral loads compared with the infected controls (IC). A significant increase in systemic central memory CD4+ T …

Risk-Factor Induced Changes In The Breast Microenvironment Facilitate Inflammatory Breast Cancer Progression And Lymphovascular Invasion, Wintana Balema, Wintana Balema

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is a rapidly progressing, rare and highly lethal form of breast cancer. IBC is a clinical diagnosis, requiring >1/3 involvement on the affected breast and/or skin by erythema, and disease onset of < 6 months. The clinical symptoms of IBC vary in severity and presentation, these include redness, warmth, skin thickening and bruised or pink/purple discoloration appearance and skin changes such as peau d’orange. These skin symptoms are not attributed to inflammation, rather IBC is characterized by florid lymphovascular tumor emboli clogging dermal lymphatics. This leads to “classic” symptoms of breast swelling and skin edema or discoloration. To date, unique genomic drivers which differentiate IBC from non-IBC invasive breast cancers have not been identified highlighting a role for the microenvironment. Several epidemiological studies have unveiled subtype-specific risk factors associated with IBC that are known to alter the microenvironment. Obesity is an established risk factor for all subtypes of IBC. Never-breastfeeding increases risk for developing the most aggressive, triple-negative IBC. Further, never breastfeeding is associated with later clinical stage and worse outcomes. We worked to model these overlapping risk factors to understand microenvironment changes that may lead to the lymphatic change’s indicative of IBC.

First, we investigated the association of a “classic” triad of clinical IBC signs with overall survival among patients to demonstrate the most overt clinical findings of lymphatic involvement were impacting prognosis. We evaluated a triad of IBC signs, including swollen involved breast, nipple change, and diffuse skin change, using breast medical photographs from patients enrolled on a prospective IBC registry. We reported that the …

Ankyrin Dependent Mitochondrial Function And Bioenergetics In The Heart, Janani Subramaniam, Janani Subramaniam

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

ANK2 mutations in patients are associated with numerous arrhythmias, cardiomyopathies, and other heart defects. In the heart, AnkB, the protein encoded by ANK2, clusters relevant ion channels and cell adhesion molecules in several important domains; however, its role at Mitochondria Associated ER/SR Membranes (MAMs) has yet to be investigated. MAMs are crucial to mitochondrial function and metabolism and are signaling hubs implicated in various cardiac pathologies. Among several functions, these sites mediate the direct transfer of calcium from the ER/SR to the mitochondria to modulate ATP synthesis. Given that mitochondrial function and energy production are paramount to cardiovascular heath, …

Mitochondrial Functions Are Major Targets Of Isocyanide Activity In Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, Morgan A. Siemek

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

The isocyanide functional group is important in the synthesis of many organic compounds and is found in natural products produced by plants, bacteria, marine invertebrates, and fungi. The antimicrobial activities of isocyanide compounds have been documented for almost 70 years, however, the biochemical targets and mechanisms of action remain poorly defined. We report antimicrobial activity of 4-para-nitrophenyl-isocyanide (p-NPIC) against a model fungus, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and the human fungal pathogen Candida albicans. To identify the cellular and molecular targets of p-NPIC, we screened the non-essential single gene-deletion collection of S. cerevisiae. We …

Alfred Russel Wallace Notes 24. Wallace At 200: Potential Subjects For Student Theses, Charles H. Smith

Faculty/Staff Personal Papers

The bicentennial of Alfred Russel Wallace’s birth in 2023 will likely produce a wide array of reviews of his life and work; here, we pause for a short look at some Wallace-related questions that might be adapted for student theses and dissertations. Some of the subjects treated fall in with established lines of research, while others are suggested by other Wallace interests or activities that have not been much explored.

Alfred Russel Wallace Notes 23: The Jersey Devil, And Friends, Charles H. Smith

Faculty/Staff Personal Papers

For nearly three hundred years reports have surfaced of a purported cryptid form known as the ‘Jersey devil.’ In this work an interpretation of the goals of biogeography is given, and how this field can be related to such alleged phenomena, as well as to some of the ideas of Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913) that seem to find their origin in the writings of Benedict de Spinoza (1632-1677).