Digital Commons Network^™

Sequence Detection And Comparative Analysis Of The Hv1 And Hv2 Control Regions Of Human Mitochondrial Dna By Denaturing High-Performance Liquid Chromatography, Sarah E. Lewis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The objective of this research was the evaluation and forensic validation of Denaturing High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (DHPLC) as a sequencingindependent means of detecting the presence of sequence differences in pair-wise mixtures of non-concordant amplicons of human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). The reproducibility and efficacy of DHPLC results, including amplification reproducibility, injection reproducibility, and column-to-column reproducibility were measured, showing negligible assay-to-assay variability. In addition, cross-contamination on the DHPLC columns demonstrated very low level DNA carryover between a high-abundance sample and subsequent zero-volume injections.

The accuracy with which DHPLC technology can be used to screen both evidence and control samples in the context …

Building Sustainable, Just Food Systems In Detroit: Reflections From Seed Wayne, A Campus-Community Collaborative, Kameshwari Pothukuchi

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Research Publications

This article describes a campus-community collaborative, SEED Wayne, which was developed to build sustainable food systems on Wayne State University’s campus and in Detroit neighborhoods. The discussion traces the nature of SEED Wayne’s partnerships and reflects on the program’s past three years of existence, including experiences within the university, practical challenges associated with defining sustainability uniformly across diverse campus and community activities, gaining consistent student involvement, and the mutual benefits of the university-community partnership.

The Health Status, Concerns, And Reform In Uruguay With An Emphasis On Health Promotion Programs Geared Towards The Care And Development Of The Country's Children And Adolescents, Melissa Raquel Ramírez

Honors Scholar Theses

This study was conducted in Montevideo, Uruguay, where I examined the actions that the country and society as a whole, its various communities, the Uruguayan government, and the people take in order to prevent disease and promote a healthy society. An ethnographic experiential and evidence-based approach, including personal experience, interviews, and official government documents, was used to fully describe the way the system operates. Due to Uruguay's demographic characteristics, particular attention was paid to children and adolescents. For this thesis, Uruguay is described in terms of its history, physical and mental health issues, society's shared health concerns, and its vulnerable …

How Do Human Disturbance, Beach Characteristics, And Coastal Engineering Affect Snowy Plover (Charadrius Alexandrinus) Habitat Selection On The Florida Panhandle?, Alyson F. Webber

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Snowy plovers (Charadrius alexandrinus) are listed as threatened by the State of Florida, and have been a species of growing concern among wildlife management agencies. The population of snowy plovers breeding along the Florida Panhandle has a patchy distribution, and large stretches of private and public land go virtually unused by plovers. Further, there is a strong negative correlation between coastal engineering projects and snowy plover nest site use. The relationship between coastal engineering and snowy plover nesting distribution is unclear, however, because most engineering projects have occurred on developed beaches with high human use. My objectives were …

Heterogeneity, Control, Social Infrastructure, And Possibilities Of Participation: Their Interplay In Modern Understandings Of Heredity And In Interpretation Of Science, Peter J. Taylor

Working Papers on Science in a Changing World

This working paper is a prospectus for research, writing, and engagement. It consists of vignettes, sketches of lines of inquiry, and proposals for engagement, all of which concern modern understandings of heredity and development over the life course as well as the social interpretation of science. The various items address a range of areas of science and of its interpretation: heritability studies, the social uses of genetic information, gene-by-environment interaction, personalized medicine, IQ paradoxes, racial group membership, biobanks, and life events and difficulties research. Fresh perspectives in these areas are opened up by examining the ways that research and application …

Discontinuities: Predicting Invasions And Extinctions, Aaron Lotz

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In this dissertation, I explore multiple tenets of the textural discontinuity hypothesis, which states that hierarchical landscape structures with scale-specific pattern entrain attributes of animals inhabiting the landscape. Landscapes form hierarchies that are structured by vegetative, geomorphological and contagious disturbance processes. The spatial and temporal patterns inherent in landscapes reflect numerous processes, interacting on distinct scales, which shape the assembly of animal communities. Analysis of body mass patterns and functional group distributions has been suggested as methods to provide insight about these underlying hierarchical processes. Scientists have posited that species at the edges of body mass aggregations may be exposed …

Diversity, Loss, And Gain Of Malaria Parasites In A Globally Invasive Bird, Alfonso Marzal, Robert Ricklefs, Gediminas Valkiunas, Tamer Albayrak, Elena Arriero, Camille Bonneaud, Gábor Czirják, John Ewen, Olof Hellgren, Dita Hořáková, Tatjana Iezhova, Henrik Jensen, Asta Križanauskienė, Marcos Lima, Florentino De Lope, Eyðfinn Magnussen, Lynn Martin, Anders Møller, Vaidas Palinauskas, Péter Pap, Javier Pérez-Tris, Ravinder Sehgal, Manuel Soler, Eszter Szöllősi, Helena Westerdahl, Pavel Zetindjiev, Staffan Bensch

Biology Department Faculty Works

Invasive species can displace natives, and thus identifying the traits that make aliens successful is crucial for predicting and preventing biodiversity loss. Pathogens may play an important role in the invasive process, facilitating colonization of their hosts in new continents and islands. According to the Novel Weapon Hypothesis, colonizers may out-compete local native species by bringing with them novel pathogens to which native species are not adapted. In contrast, the Enemy Release Hypothesis suggests that flourishing colonizers are successful because they have left their pathogens behind. To assess the role of avian malaria and related haemosporidian parasites in the global …

Merging Resource Availability With Isotope Mixing Models: The Role Of Neutral Interaction Assumptions, Justin D. Yeakel, Mark Novak, Paulo R. Guimarães, Nathaniel J. Dominy, Paul L. Koch, Eric J. Ward, Jonathan W. Moore, Brice X. Semmens

Dartmouth Scholarship

Bayesian mixing models have allowed for the inclusion of uncertainty and prior information in the analysis of trophic interactions using stable isotopes. Formulating prior distributions is relatively straightforward when incorporating dietary data. However, the use of data that are related, but not directly proportional, to diet (such as prey availability data) is often problematic because such information is not necessarily predictive of diet, and the information required to build a reliable prior distribution for all prey species is often unavailable. Omitting prey availability data impacts the estimation of a predator's diet and introduces the strong assumption of consumer ultrageneralism (where …

Biomedical Thrillers: Fiction Based In Fact, Or Just Fiction?, Emily F. Schmitt Lavin

Biology Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures

No abstract provided.

Iowa Academy Of Science: The New Bulletin, V07n2, Summer 2011, Iowa Academy Of Science

New Bulletin

Inside This Issue:

--Message from the Executive Director

--2011 Friends of Science & Outstanding Service Award Winners

--IAS Corporate Memberships

--2011 Distinguished Science Awards

--IAS—Iowa DNR Pilot Workshop bucks national trends

--Wanted: Saylorville Gift Shop Coordinator

--Announcements, Events & Deadlines

High Genetic Diversity And Significant Population Structure In Cedrus Brevifolia Henry, A Narrow Endemic Mediterranean Tree From Cyprus, Nicolas George Homer Eliades, Oliver Gailing, Ludger Leinemann, Bruno Fady, Reiner Finkeldey

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Endemic island plant species with a narrow distribution are often, but not always, linked to low genetic variation within populations and a lack of differentiation among populations. Cedrus brevifolia is a narrow endemic island tree species of Cyprus. Its range is restricted to a single forest, divided into five neighbouring sites. This study, using biparentally inherited nuclear microsatellites and paternally inherited plastid (chloroplast) microsatellites, assessed the genetic variation of C. brevifolia within its sole population and the level of genetic differentiation among formed sites. The results from both markers showed high diversity (nuclear HT = 0. 70; plastid HT = …

Bonobos Fall Within The Genomic Variation Of Chimpanzees, Anne Fischer, Kay Prüfer, Jeffrey M. Good, Michel Halbwax, Victor Wiebe, Claudine André, Rebeca Atencia, Lawrence Mugisha, Susan E. Ptak, Svante Pääbo

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

To gain insight into the patterns of genetic variation and evolutionary relationships within and between bonobos and chimpanzees, we sequenced 150,000 base pairs of nuclear DNA divided among 15 autosomal regions as well as the complete mitochondrial genomes from 20 bonobos and 58 chimpanzees. Except for western chimpanzees, we found poor genetic separation of chimpanzees based on sample locality. In contrast, bonobos consistently cluster together but fall as a group within the variation of chimpanzees for many of the regions. Thus, while chimpanzees retain genomic variation that predates bonobo-chimpanzee speciation, extensive lineage sorting has occurred within bonobos such that much …

Predicting Soil Erosion In The Santa Rosa Creek Watershed Using Rusle2 And Geographic Information Systems, Stacey Carol Smith

Master's Theses

The Santa Rosa Creek watershed is one of the most pristine watersheds on California’s Central Coast.  Preserving this watershed is of great interest because it provides rich soils for agriculture, vast rangelands for cattle, and flowing streams for federally threatened species such as steelhead trout.  Soil erosion could impact these resources.  Using prediction tools, it is possible to study the erosion that could be occurring in a watershed and identify locations which could contribute the highest amounts of sediment.  The objectives of this study were to use RUSLE2 and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to predict soil erosion rates for each …

Factors Controlling Pre-Columbian And Early Historic Maize Productivity In The American Southwest, Part 2: The Chaco Halo, Mesa Verde, Pajarito Plateau/ Bandelier, And Zuni Archaeological Regions, Larry Benson

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Chemical and nutrient analyses of 471 soil samples from 161 sites within four archaeological regions (Pajarito Plateau/Bandelier, Zuni, Mesa Verde, and the Chaco Halo) were combined with historical climate data in order to evaluate the agricultural productivity of each region. In addition, maize productivity and field-life calculations were performed using organic-nitrogen (N) values from the upper 50 cm of soil in each region and a range (1–3%/year) of N-mineralization rates. The endmember values of this range were assumed representative of dry and wet climate states. With respect to precipitation and heat, the Pajarito Plateau area has excellent agricultural potential; the …

Simulated Reductions In Consumption Of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Improves Diet Quality In Lower Mississippi Delta Adults, Jessica L. Thomson, Lisa M. Tussing-Humphreys, Stephen J. Onufrak, Carol Connell, Jamie M. Zoellner, Margaret L. Bogle, Kathleen Yadrick

Faculty Publications

Background

Although the effects of replacing sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) with water on energy intake and body weight have been reported, little is known about how these replacements affect diet quality.

Objective

To simulate the effects of replacing SSBs with tap water on diet quality and total energy intake of Lower Mississippi Delta (LMD) adults.

Design

Retrospective analysis of cross-sectional dietary intake data using a representative sample of LMD adults (n=1,689). Diet quality was measured using the Healthy Eating Index-2005 (HEI-2005) scores that were computed using the population ratio method. The effects of substituting SSBs with water on diet …

13th Annual Pacific Research Day Abstracts, University Of The Pacific

Excellence Day

No abstract provided.

Finding A Link Between The Hormones Of The Somatotropic Axis And Growth Rate Of Juvenile Steller Sea Lions, Katherine Denise Hebert

Honors Scholar Theses

The decline of the Western population (144 degrees west longitude) of Steller sea lions is hypothesized to be the result of impaired nutritional status and decline of growth rate, especially in juveniles and subsequent natality. Because changes in components of the somatotropic axis can be predictive of nutritional status and growth rate in this species, 2 groups of free-ranging juvenile Steller sea lions were captured in Prince William Sound, AK. Group 1 (n = 30) was initially captured at 5 mo and recaptured at 10 mo of age, whereas group 2 (n = 9) was captured at 7 and 8 …

Upper Pleistocene Human Dispersals Out Of Africa: A Review Of The Current State Of The Debate, Amanuel Beyin

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Although there is a general consensus on African origin of early modern humans, there is disagreement about how and when they dispersed to Eurasia. This paper reviews genetic and Middle Stone Age/Middle Paleolithic archaeological literature from northeast Africa, Arabia, and the Levant to assess the timing and geographic backgrounds of Upper Pleistocene human colonization of Eurasia. At the center of the discussion lies the question of whether eastern Africa alone was the source of Upper Pleistocene human dispersals into Eurasia or were there other loci of human expansions outside of Africa? The reviewed literature hints at two modes of early …

Analysis And Interpretation Of Factors Leading To Increased Aids Prevalence In Sub-Saharan Africa, William Kalhorn

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

My thesis research project focuses on the major factors that are contributing to the worst disease epidemic on the planet today. I have aimed to determine what may be some of the most important factors contributing to highly variable difference in HIV/AIDS prevalence rates are among the regions of East, West, and South Africa.  The HIV/AIDS epidemic has been growing and expanding to new areas of the world since the first case arose in 1959 in what is now called Kinshasa, Congo (Avert, 2011). The AIDS/HIV epidemic is believed to have originated on the African continent, and this is where …

Archaeoparasitology Of Chaco Canyon, Rachel Paseka

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Ancient cultures of the Colorado Plateau have been a focus of archaeoparasitology since its inception, and a vast parasitological history is recorded in coprolites preserved in this arid region. The inhabitants of Chaco Canyon dominated Ancestral Puebloan culture between 1050 and 1120 AD and were responsible for the construction of great towns, road systems, and early agriculture. Analysis of the parasites preserved in fecal remains contributes to an increased knowledge of ancient Chacoan health and culture. Nineteen coprolites from four sites in Chaco Canyon were rehydrated and analyzed microscopically for parasite remains. Rhabditiform and filariform nematode larvae were found from …

The Importance Of Undecideds In The Evolution Vs. Creationism Debate, Seth Steinman

Senior Honors Projects

As a scientific theory, evolution has as much empirical support for its core assertions as the heliocentric universe theory or the belief that the Earth is round.  Despite a unanimous consensus in the scientific community about evolution’s validity, the General Social Survey (GSS) consistently reports that 85 percent of Americans are either undecided or do not believe in evolution.

This divide between evolutionists, led by scientists, and creationists, led by religious leaders, has enormous scientific and political implications, which include funding for basic scientific research, acting to stop global warming, and what schools should be teaching our children.

The most …

Designing A School Garden Space That Emphasizes Children's Wants And Uses Permaculture Design Methods, Mikhaela Mullins

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

A case study was organized at Saratoga Elementary school in Lincoln, Nebraska to obtain data on what children desire in a garden space. To collect this data a school garden space was constructed and an after school garden club was implemented. Students who participated in the after school garden club partook in the study by drawing their ideal garden. Elements that the subjects drew were identified and categorized into ‘highly desired’ and ‘somewhat desired’.

These elements were then incorporated into a proposed garden design plan for Saratoga. The proposal plan uses Permaculture design methods to emphasize sustainability.

Eugenics And Modern Biology: Critiques Of Eugenics, 1910-1945, Garland E. Allen

Biology Faculty Research

Eugenics in most western countries in the first four decades of the twentieth century was based on the idea that genes control most human phenotypic traits, everything from physical features such as polydactyly and eye color to physiological conditions such as the A-B-O blood groups to mental and personality traits such as “feeblemindedness”, alcoholism and pauperism. It assessing the development of the eugenics movement – its rise and decline between 1900 and 1950 – it is important to recognize that its naïve assumptions and often flawed methodologies were openly criticized at the time by scientists and non-scientists alike. This paper …

Ancient Mitochondrial Dna From Pre-Historic Southeastern Europe: The Presence Of East Eurasian Haplogroups Provides Evidence Of Interactions With South Siberians Across The Central Asian Steppe Belt, Jeremy R. Newton

Masters Theses

Studies of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) polymorphism have provided valuable insights for understanding patterns of human migration and interaction. The ability to recover ancient mtDNA sequence data from post-mortem bone and tissue samples allows us to view snapshots of historic gene pools firsthand, provided that great care is taken to prevent sample contamination. In this study, we analyzed the DNA sequence of the first hypervariable segment (HVSI) of the mtDNA control region, as well as a portion of the coding region, in 14 individuals from three collective burials from the Neolithic Dnieper-Donetz culture and three individuals from Bronze Age Kurgan burials, …

2011 - The Sixteenth Annual Symposium Of Student Scholars

Symposium of Student Scholars Program Books

The full program book from the Sixteenth Annual Symposium of Student Scholars, held on April 26, 2011. Includes abstracts from the presentations and posters.

Debrazza’S Monkeys (Cercopithecus Neglectus) In A Mixed-Taxa Zoo Exhibit: Effects On The Behavior Of A Breeding Group Of Debrazza’S Monkeys After The Birth Of An Infant, Rachel Diamond

Psychology Honors Projects

Historically, zoos rarely feature mixed taxa exhibits including multiple primate species; the Minnesota Zoo opened such a unique four-species exhibit featuring Rock hyraxes, Red River hogs, Colobus monkeys, and DeBrazza’s monkeys in May, 2010. Because of potential problems associated with territoriality and aggression, primates in mixed-taxa exhibits are generally non-breeding. However, the DeBrazza’s monkeys at the MN Zoo are a breeding pair with a juvenile offspring. The intent of this study was to design an ethogram with the purpose of calculating the effects of a mixed taxa exhibit on the behavior of this breeding group, and to compare their behavior …

An Exploration Of Pharmacognosy And Its Potential In The Multi-Faceted Solution Required To Address Hiv/Aids In Sub-Saharan Africa, Alexandra Sassi

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

This work has both both biological and anthropoligcal foci. It addresses research done on the medicinal properties of plants and how this research could make positive contributions to the current social and biological issues surrounding the HIV/AIDS epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa.

Depicting Simultaneously Similarity, Diversity, Ancestry, And Admixture?, Peter J. Taylor

Working Papers on Science in a Changing World

Can any depiction of genetic relationships among humans allow simultaneously for similarity, diversity, ancestry, and admixture (i.e., groups that had split mixing again)? I asked this question while puzzling over the messages conveyed by diagrams from the work of Tishkoff and collaborators on genetic variation among humans in and out of Africa. In this talk I present explorations of alternative depictions of human genetic variation keeping my initial question in mind. By the end I will have prepared the ground for an assertion that the very methodology of generating and depicting human ancestry privileges a racialized view of human diversity.

Geochemical Analysis Of Ancient Fremont Activity Areas At Wolf Village, Utah, Laura Morrison Pyper

Theses and Dissertations

There is growing interest in the use of geochemical analyses for the evaluation of anthropogenically altered soils and other archaeological deposits. Areas of human habitation and activity tend to accumulate greater levels of soil phosphorus and trace metals. These elevated concentrations leave permanent signatures that can only be removed by erosion of the soil itself, and so phosphorus and trace metal mapping have become popular field procedures to identify areas of habitation and activity. Gridded soil samples were collected and soil phosphate and trace metal ions were extracted to identify these activity areas at the ancient Fremont site Wolf Village …

Fracture In Teeth—A Diagnostic For Inferring Bite Force And Tooth Function, Paul J. Constantino, Brian R. Lawn, James J.-W. Lee, Peter W. Lucas

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

Teeth are brittle and highly susceptible to cracking. We propose that observations of such cracking can be used as a diagnostic tool for predicting bite force and inferring tooth function in living and fossil mammals. Laboratory tests on model tooth structures and extracted human teeth in simulated biting identify the principal fracture modes in enamel. Examination of museum specimens reveals the presence of similar fractures in a wide range of vertebrates, suggesting that cracks extended during ingestion or mastication. The use of ‘fracture mechanics’ from materials engineering provides elegant relations for quantifying critical bite forces in terms of characteristic tooth …