Digital Commons Network^™

Advancing Human Health In The Decade Ahead: Pregnancy As A Key Window For Discovery: A Burroughs Wellcome Fund Pregnancy Think Tank., Yoel Sadovsky, Sam Mesiano, Graham J Burton, Michelle Lampl, Jeffrey C Murray, Rachel M Freathy, Anita Mahadevan-Jansen, Ashley Moffett, Nathan D Price, Paul H Wise, Derek E Wildman, Ralph Snyderman, Nigel Paneth, John Anthony Capra, Marcelo A Nobrega, Yaacov Barak, Louis J Muglia

Articles, Abstracts, and Reports

Recent revolutionary advances at the intersection of medicine, omics, data sciences, computing, epidemiology, and related technologies inspire us to ponder their impact on health. Their potential impact is particularly germane to the biology of pregnancy and perinatal medicine, where limited improvement in health outcomes for women and children has remained a global challenge. We assembled a group of experts to establish a Pregnancy Think Tank to discuss a broad spectrum of major gestational disorders and adverse pregnancy outcomes that affect maternal-infant lifelong health and should serve as targets for leveraging the many recent advances. This report reflects avenues for future …

Reconsidering The Obstetrical Dilemma: Correlations Between Head And Pelvic Size, Kelsey Catrice Fox

LSU Master's Theses

The Obstetrical Dilemma (OD) theory has become canon in biological anthropology. The OD posits that i] dystocia results from bipedal mothers and encephalized infants, ii] contrasting selection for bipedality and obstetrics hinders locomotive efficiency, and iii] the contradicting requirement of the fetus being small enough to pass through the birth canal yet being cognitively advanced enough to cling to its mother after birth. Females, theoretically, exhibit deficient gait efficiency for the sake of successful childbirth. An obstetric advantage theory has been posited where taller individuals with a larger head size have larger pelves. If the distance between the acetabulae increases …

Genomic Diversity Of Bacteriophages Infecting Microbacterium Spp, Deborah Jacobs-Sera, Lawrence A. Abad, Richard M. Alvey, Kirk R. Anders, Haley G. Aull, Suparna S. Bhalla, Lawrence S. Blumer, David W. Bollivar, J. Alfred Bonilla, Kristen A. Butela, Roy J. Coomans, Steven G. Cresawn, Tom D'Elia, Arturo Diaz, Ashley M. Divens, Nicholas P. Edgington, Gregory D. Frederick, Maria D. Gainey, Rebecca A. Garlena, Kenneth W. Grant, Susan M.R. Gurney, Heather L. Hendrickson, Lee E. Hughes, Margaret A. Kenna, Karen K. Klyczek, Hari Kotturi, Travis Mavrich, Angela L. Mckinney, Evan C. Merkhofer, Jordan Moberg Parker, Sally D. Molloy

Life Sciences Faculty Research

The bacteriophage population is vast, dynamic, old, and genetically diverse. The genomics of phages that infect bacterial hosts in the phylum Actinobacteria show them to not only be diverse but also pervasively mosaic, and replete with genes of unknown function. To further explore this broad group of bacteriophages, we describe here the isolation and genomic characterization of 116 phages that infect Microbacterium spp. Most of the phages are lytic, and can be grouped into twelve clusters according to their overall relatedness; seven of the phages are singletons with no close relatives. Genome sizes vary from 17.3 kbp to 97.7 kbp, …

Long-Term Ndvi And Recent Vegetation Cover Profiles Of Major Offshore Island Nesting Sites Of Sea Turtles In Saudi Waters Of The Northern Arabian Gulf, Rommel H. Maneja, Jeffrey D. Miller, Wenzhao Li, Hesham El-Askary, Ace Vincent B. Flandez, Joshua J. Dagoy, Joselito Francis A. Alcaria, Abdullajid U. Basali, Khaled A. Al-Abdulkader, Ronald A. Loughland, Mohamed A. Qurban

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Vegetation is an important ecological component of offshore islands in the Arabian Gulf (AG), which maintains long-term resilience of these islands. This is achieved by influencing sediment retention and moisture acquisition via condensation during periods of high humidity and by providing a variety of microhabitats for island fauna. The resilience of offshore islands’ ecosystems in the Saudi waters is important because they host the largest number of nesting hawksbill and green turtles in the AG. This study defines the characteristics and the long-term trends in vegetation cover of the offshore islands used by sea turtles as nesting grounds in the …

Vertebrates On The Brink As Indicators Of Biological Annihilation And The Sixth Mass Extinction, Gerardo Ceballos, Paul R. Ehrlich, Peter H. Raven

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Library Materials

The ongoing sixth mass species extinction is the result of the destruction of component populations leading to eventual extirpation of entire species. Populations and species extinctions have severe implications for society through the degradation of ecosystem services. Here we assess the extinction crisis from a different perspective. We examine 29,400 species of terrestrial vertebrates, and determine which are on the brink of extinction because they have fewer than 1,000 individuals. There are 515 species on the brink (1.7% of the evaluated vertebrates). Around 94% of the populations of 77 mammal and bird species on the brink have been lost in …

The State Of Forage Germplasm Resources In Yunnan Province, Zhenzhong Sun, Jun Yin, Qiao Wei

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

No abstract provided.

Benchmarking And Parameter Sensitivity Of Physiological And Vegetation Dynamics Using The Functionally Assembled Terrestrial Ecosystem Simulator (Fates) At Barro Colorado Island, Panama, Charles D. Koven, Ryan G. Knox, Rosie A. Fisher, Jeffrey Q. Chambers, Bradley O. Christoffersen, Stuart J. Davies, Matteo Detto

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Plant functional traits determine vegetation responses to environmental variation, but variation in trait values is large, even within a single site. Likewise, uncertainty in how these traits map to Earth system feedbacks is large. We use a vegetation demographic model (VDM), the Functionally Assembled Terrestrial Ecosystem Simulator (FATES), to explore parameter sensitivity of model predictions, and comparison to observations, at a tropical forest site: Barro Colorado Island in Panama. We define a single 12-dimensional distribution of plant trait variation, derived primarily from observations in Panama, and define plant functional types (PFTs) as random draws from this distribution. We compare several …

Low Income And Access To Healthy Food: The Case Of Milk, Jeffrey Young, James K. Binkley

Faculty & Staff Research and Creative Activity

Even with abundant dietary research and knowledge about healthy eating, there is still a considerable shortfall in dietary quality of low-income households in the US. Chen et al. (2012) proposed that this problem is at least in part due to low-income individuals’ having less expected future earnings and thus, reduced incentive to pursue longevity by means of healthy eating. We further their analysis, offering improvement by controlling for access to low-fat milk. We find that even when allegedly crucial factors such as cost and access are not issues, relative purchasing of low-fat milk is still linked to higher income.

How Many Tree Species Of Birch Are In Alaska? Implications For Wetland Designations, Carol A. Rowe, Robert W. Lichvar, Paul G. Wolf

Biology Faculty Publications

Wetland areas are critical habitats, especially in northern regions of North America. Wetland classifications are based on several factors, including the presence of certain plant species and assemblages of species, of which trees play a significant role. Here we examined wetland species of birch (Betula) in North America, with a focus on Alaska, and the use of birche tree species in wetland delineation. We sampled over 200 trees from sites, including Alaska, Alberta, Minnesota, and New Hampshire. We used genetic data from over 3000 loci detected by restriction site associated DNA analysis. We used an indirect estimate of …

Public Perceptions Of Veterinarians From Social And Online Media Listening, Nicole Olynk Widmar, Courtney Bir, John Lai, Christopher Wolf

Department of Agricultural Economics Faculty Publications

The public perception of the veterinary medicine profession is of increasing concern given the mounting challenges facing the industry, ranging from student debt loads to mental health implications arising from compassion fatigue, euthanasia, and other challenging aspects of the profession. This analysis employs social media listening and analysis to discern top themes arising from social and online media posts referencing veterinarians. Social media sentiment analysis is also employed to aid in quantifying the search results, in terms of whether they are positivity/negativity associated. From September 2017-November 2019, over 1.4 million posts and 1.7 million mentions were analyzed; the top domain …

How “Dependent” Are We? A Spatiotemporal Analysis Of The Young And The Older Adult Populations In The Us, Debasree Das Gupta, David W. S. Wong

Kinesiology and Health Science Faculty Publications

The shifting of a country’s age structure has far-reaching socioeconomic and policy implications. In the US, the changing age structure at the sub-national level has received little research attention. To address this gap, we examine age dependencies across states in the US between 1990 and 2010 using decennial census data. We find that dependency changes have been gradual with a distinct graying of states during this period. Within this overarching trend, the sources of states’ dependencies follow complicated trajectories without clear spatiotemporal patterns. Nevertheless, changes in states’ old-age dependency contributions to respective total dependencies are geographically clustered and the inverse …

Recent Shrinkage And Fragmentation Of Bluegrass Landscape In Kentucky, Bo Tao, Yanjun Yang, Jia Yang, S. Ray Smith, James F. Fox, Alex C. Ruane, Jinze Liu, Wei Ren

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

The Bluegrass Region is an area in north-central Kentucky with unique natural and cultural significance, which possesses some of the most fertile soils in the world. Over recent decades, land use and land cover changes have threatened the protection of the unique natural, scenic, and historic resources in this region. In this study, we applied a fragmentation model and a set of landscape metrics together with the satellite-derived USDA Cropland Data Layer to examine the shrinkage and fragmentation of grassland in the Bluegrass Region, Kentucky during 2008–2018. Our results showed that recent land use change across the Bluegrass Region is …

Agroclimatic Zoning For Cultivation Of Saffron Using Ahp Approach In Sarab, Navid Yaghoubzadeh, Razieh Pourdarbani, Ardavan Ghorbani, Gholamhossein Shahgholi

Emirates Journal for Engineering Research

According to agricultural experts, saffron is one of the crops that can be a good solution to the problem of drought in a water crisis situation. A plant which uses low water consumption and high economic incomes is a good alternative to wheat, a water-consuming crop. Saffron does not need water at all in the summer, and in the fall and winter, rain will irrigate this crop and require very little water during the year. This study was conducted to select the optimum location of saffron cultivation and its comparative study in Sarab with regard to the role of important …

Toxic Structures: Speculation And Lead Exposure In Detroit's Single-Family Rental Market, Alexa Eisenberg, Eric Seymour, Alex B. Hill, Joshua Akers

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Research Publications

Foreclosure sales permitted investors to purchase large volumes of low-cost residential properties after the last financial crisis, reshaping patterns of property ownership in low-income housing markets across the US. This study links post-foreclosure property acquisitions by investor-landlords to subsequent lead poisoning cases among children under age six living in Detroit, Michigan. We find that the odds of exhibiting elevated blood lead levels (≥ 5 μg/dL) are higher for children living in investor-owned homes purchased through tax foreclosure sale. These findings highlight the potential for property speculation in post-foreclosure housing markets to exacerbate severe and racialized burdens of excess lead toxicity …

College Of Natural Sciences Newsletter, June 2020, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

Volume 1. Issue 5

Contents:

Dean’s Update P.1
Awards & Recognition P.2
Club Spotlight P.3 Interest in Science | Welcome P.4
Research Spotlight | NSO Update P.5
Monthly Photo Series: Gardens P.6

First International External Quality Assessment Scheme Of Nucleic Acid Amplification Tests For The Detection Of Schistosoma And Soil-Transmitted Helminths, Including Strongyloides: A Pilot Study, Piet Cools, Lisette Van Lieshout, Rob Koelewijn, David Addiss, Sitara S.R. Ajjampur, Mio Ayana, Richard S. Bradbury, Jason L. Cantera, Daniel Dana, Kerstin Fischer, Rubina Imtiaz, Joyce Kabagenyi, James Lok, James Mccarthy, Rojelio Mejia, Zeleke Mekonnen, Sammy M. Njenga, Nurulhasanah Othman, Hongguang Shao, Rebecca Traub, Marjan Van Esbroeck, Jozef Vercruysse, Johnny Vlaminck, Steven A. Williams, Jaco J. Verweij, Jaap J. Van Hellemond, Bruno Levecke

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background Nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) are increasingly being used as diagnostic tools for soil-transmitted helminths (STHs; Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura, Necator ameri-canus, Ancylostoma duodenale and A. ceylanicum), Strongyloides stercoralis and Schisto-soma in human stool. Currently, there is a large diversity of NAATs being applied, but an external quality assessment scheme (EQAS) for these diagnostics is lacking. An EQAS involves a blinded process where test results reported by a laboratory are compared to those reported by reference or expert laboratories, allowing for an objective assessment of the diagnostic performance of a laboratory. In the current study, we piloted an international …

Cal Poly Pier Master Plan, Troy A. Lawson

Master's Theses

The Cal Poly Pier (Pier) Master/Facility Plan (FP) document provides the vision of the future for the Pier, a marine science research facility. The Plan facilitates project development and management of the Pier while meeting university and department research goals. Specifically, the FP document establishes goals and strategies to direct long-term development of the Pier, streamlines agency approval and permit requirements, provides context for pier management, and assists the permitting process for future development as it relates to regulatory permits and programmatic growth on the Cal Poly Pier to help meet goals of the Center for Coastal Marine Sciences (CCMS). …

Vulnerability Of Small Forest Patches To Fire In The Paraiba Do Sul River Valley, Southeast Brazil: Implications For Restoration Of The Atlantic Forest Biome, Betina J. Guedes, Klecia G. Massi, Cody Evers, Max Nielsen-Pincus

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Atlantic Forest biome, a biodiversity hotspot historically threatened by deforestation and human disturbance, has recently seen a net gain in native forest cover due to changes in land use, enactment of new laws, and substantial investment in restoration. Like many South American and global ecosystems, the Atlantic Forest biome has also experienced an increase in area burned by wildfire largely due to human ignitions, which threatens these gains. Our objective was to understand the vulnerability of protected areas and small patches of neotropical forest to fire in the Paraíba do Sul River Valley, Brazil, a region within the Atlantic …

Guidelines For Sustainable Construction Methods To Build Over Difficult Topographies, Israa R. Fadel, Marwan Halabi, Hiba Mohsen, Maged Youssef

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

Sustainable construction development is a recent term that is required to create an eco-friendly built environment using renewable and recyclable resources and to reduce energy consumption and waste within protecting the natural environment. This term means such an improvement that pleases the current requirements without limitation of the prospect of sustaining requirements in future. Many problems face builders while executing projects, especially these projects were decided to be built over difficult topographies, such as rivers, falls, inclinations, caves, ridges, cliffs, and mountains. Construction challenges to build a project over a difficult topography are diverse starting by executing piles, retaining walls, …

Monitoring Participatory Approaches In Mediterranean Waterfront Developments (El Mina, Lebanon; Alexandria, Egypt; And Antalya, Turkey), Sima El-Cheikh, Mary Felix, Nabil Mohareb, Ibtihal Y. El-Bastawissi

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

Public participation is an important tool for communities to influence development decisions for public spaces in general and waterfronts in particular. In coastal cities, waterfronts are an important touristic attraction and are affected by social and economic issues. Users’ activities and responsiveness to waterfront projects are affected by the development types and methods. This study is part of ongoing research aiming to evaluate the participatory approach methods in the waterfronts of Mediterranean cities. It examines three coastal cities that have developed differently based on sustainable development studies. This study is a top–down approach that investigates the applied phases and methods …

Hijab In The Indonesian National Struggle, Mangesti Rahayu

International Review of Humanities Studies

Fashion and history cannot be separated, because fashion is one indicator of a change in culture, civilization, behavior, and certain identities. Vice versa, changes and developments in fashion are influenced by conditions at the time the fashion is developing, both the social, cultural, political, religious, economic and others. Fashion that is developing in Indonesia is Muslim fashion. One part of Muslim clothing is the hijab, headgear worn by Muslim women. Hijab is not only part of religious observance, hijab is already part of fashion and we can examine the hijab style of a society from its historical period. We can …

Cultural Policy And The Rise Of Multiculturalism Study Of Fine Arts Exhibition In The 2000s, The National Gallery Of Indonesia, Citra Smara Dewi

International Review of Humanities Studies

This study focuses on the role of cultural policy in the rise of multiculturalism with a case study of the Indonesian Art Exhibition, Pameran Seni Rupa Nusantara (PSRN) 2000s, which was initiated by a cultural institution, the National Gallery of Indonesia (GNI). PSRN exhibition is one of the important programs of GNI because it gives space to the artists of the archipelago - not just Java and Bali - to present works of modern-contemporary art rooted in local wisdom. As a nation that has the characteristics of pluralism, the spirit of multiculturalism in art has become very significant, especially in …

Sustainable Recultivation And Land Use On Karst Regions--Pasture System, Z. Q. Lai, Y. R. Chen, M. Pogacnik, S. Z. Qin, X. F. Yi, N. Yao, Y. L. Liang, J. H. Deng, X. F. Zhang, B. Zhang, H. J. Zhong, D. Kompan, X. J. Lu, X. Su, D. Y. Shen

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

No abstract provided.

Genome Skimming And Microsatellite Analysis Reveal Contrasting Patterns Of Genetic Diversity In A Rare Sandhill Endemic (Erysimum Teretifolium, Brassicaceae), José Carlos Del Valle, Julie A. Herman, Justen B. Whittall

Biology

Barriers between islands often inhibit gene flow creating patterns of isolation by distance. In island species, the majority of genetic diversity should be distributed among isolated populations. However, a self-incompatible mating system leads to higher genetic variation within populations and very little between-population subdivision. We examine these two contrasting predictions in Erysimum teretifolium, a rare self-incompatible plant endemic to island-like sandhill habitats in Santa Cruz County, California. We used genome skimming and nuclear microsatellites to assess the distribution of genetic diversity within and among eight of the 13 remaining populations. Phylogenetic analyses of the chloroplast genomes revealed a deep …

Migratory Behavior And Winter Geography Drive Differential Range Shifts Of Eastern Birds In Response To Recent Climate Change, Clark S. Rushing, J. Andrew Royle, David J. Ziolkowski Jr, Keith L. Pardieck

Ecology Center Publications

Over the past half century, migratory birds in North America have shown divergent population trends relative to resident species, with the former declining rapidly and the latter increasing. The role that climate change has played in these observed trends is not well understood, despite significant warming over this period. We used 43 y of monitoring data to fit dynamic species distribution models and quantify the rate of latitudinal range shifts in 32 species of birds native to eastern North America. Since the early 1970s, species that remain in North America throughout the year, including both resident and migratory species, appear …

Rangeland Ecology And Management In A Changing World, Joel R. Brown, Brandon T. Bestelmeyer, Kris M. Havstad

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Aurora Kinase C Expression On Retina Pigmented Epithelial Cell Migration, Proliferation, And Anchorage Independent Growth, Justin Bejar

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Cancer is a common and deadly disease in the United States with 1,806,590 new cancer cases in 2019 and 606,520 cancer deaths projected in 2020. These deaths are primarily due to the uncontrolled cell proliferation and migratory nature of the disease. Many cancer cells express genes normally restricted to meiotic cells. For example, Aurora Kinase C (AURKC) is known to regulate chromosome segregation in meiotic cells yet it is expressed in many different types of cancer, such as breast, prostate, colorectal, liver, cervical, thyroid, and testicular cancers. As a means to study the function of AURKC, an …

Storm Surges In The Bohai Sea: The Role Of Waves And Tides, Yuanyi Li, Huan Feng, Guillaume Vigouroux, Dekui Yuan, Guangyu Zhang, Xiaodi Ma, Kun Lei

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

A storm surge is a complex phenomenon in which waves, tide and current interact. Even though wind is the predominant force driving the surge, waves and tidal phase are also important factors that influence the mass and momentum transport during the surge. Devastating storm surges often occur in the Bohai Sea, a semi-enclosed shallow sea in North China, due to extreme storms. However, the effects of waves on storm surges in the Bohai Sea have not been quantified and the mechanisms responsible for the higher surges that affect part of the Bohai Sea have not been thoroughly studied. In this …

The Ocean Lifeguard Intervention Continuum: A Cognitive Aid For Surf Lifeguard Education, William A. Koon, Ryan M. Gates, Shane Scoggins, Paul Andrus, Jack A. Futoran

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

Ocean lifeguards are constantly engaged in beach risk analysis, required to efficiently evaluate a variety of environmental and other factors quickly in order to triage and prioritize who needs help. Teaching these skills is a challenge for introductory training programs. We sought to improve new lifeguards’ understanding of the interaction of various risk components in the beach environment and aid decision-making related to when a lifeguard should intervene in a situation. We developed a two-part cognitive aid for introductory ocean lifeguard education depicting individual and interacting elements of a beach goer’s risk of drowning or injury and the process by …

Genetic Diversity Correlates With Morphological Diversity Among Populations Of Achyrachaena Mollis, Rachel S. Bice

University Honors Theses

Biodiversity is important for ecosystem health and sustainability, especially in the current, rapidly changing climate. Understanding the underlying causes behind morphological variation will allow for more accurate predictions about how a population will respond to climate change, and potentially yield better natural resource management strategies. Achyrachaena mollis is an annual, self-fertilizing, range-limited, endemic species found in Northern California and Southern Oregon. This species depends primarily on wind seed dispersal for gene flow, making it a good study species in seed dispersal experiments. Additionally, A. mollis is more readily influenced by changes in its environment than a perennial due to its …