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Front Matter, Vol. 75 No. 1

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

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Ten Thousand Birds: Ornithology Since Darwin By Tim Birkhead, Jo Wimpenny, And Bob Montgomerie, Howard O. Clark Jr.

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

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Precision Of Hard Structures Used To Estimate Age Of Mountain Whitefish (Prosopium Williamsoni), Carson J. Watkins, Tyler J. Ross, Ryan S. Hardy, Michael C. Quist

Western North American Naturalist

The mountain whitefish (Prosopium williamsoni) is a widely distributed salmonid in western North America that has decreased in abundance over portions of its distribution due to anthropogenic disturbances. In this investigation, we examined precision of age estimates derived from scales, pectoral fin rays, and sagittal otoliths from 167 mountain whitefish. Otoliths and pectoral fin rays were mounted in epoxy and cross-sectioned before examination. Scales were pressed onto acetate slides and resulting impressions were examined. Between-reader precision (i.e., between 2 readers), between-reader variability, and reader confidence ratings were compared among hard structures. Coefficient of variation (CV) in age estimates …

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Tolerance Values And Effects Of Selected Environmental Determinants On Diatom Distribution In Northwest And North Central Washington, Usa, Dean W. Blinn

Western North American Naturalist

Diatoms were collected at 165 stream, river, wall seep, and pond/lake sites in 9 counties in northwest and north central Washington, including the Olympic Pennsisula, over a 5-year period. Four hundred and fifteen species in 77 genera were identified. Species assemblages were compared to altitude, physicochemical factors, aquatic habitats, and land use on west and east sides of the North Cascade Range. Species richness averaged 30.5 per site on the west side and 43 on the east side. Diatom species richness showed significant positive correlations to total nitrogen, total phosphorus, pH, specific conductance, channel embeddedness, and water temperature, and a …

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Molecular Systematics Of Nyctinomops (Chiroptera: Molossidae), Richard W. Dolman, Loren K. Ammerman

Western North American Naturalist

The genus Nyctinomops comprises 4 species of bats in the free-tailed family Molossidae: Nyctinomops macrotis, Nyctinomops femorosaccus, Nyctinomops aurispinosus, and Nyctinomops laticaudatus. The objective of this study was to use mitochondrial sequence data to test hypotheses of relationship within Nyctinomops. A total of 460 bases of cytochrome b and 686 bases of NADH dehydrogenase were sequenced and analyzed from 22 individuals by use of parsimony, maximum likelihood, and Bayesian methods. Sequences from other molossid genera (Tadarida, Cynomops,and Otomops) were used as outgroups. In addition, a series of Nyctinomops specimens from Peru was re-assessed using …

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Fecal Glucocorticoid Levels Of Endangered San Joaquin Kit Foxes (Vulpes Macrotis Mutica) In Natural And Urban Habitats, Julia L. Nelson, Scott Creel, Brian L. Cypher

Western North American Naturalist

Animals that are exposed to environmental stressors may experience chronically elevated glucocorticoid (GC) levels, which can lead to deleterious effects such as immune and reproductive system suppression. Such effects are of special concern in rare species. We measured fecal GC concentrations in endangered San Joaquin kit foxes (Vulpes macrotis mutica) to assess stress responses in natural and urban habitats. Basal GC levels were significantly higher (P < 0.01) among urban foxes (5.3 ± 2.2 ng cortisol/g dry feces; n = 32) than among foxes in natural habitats (4.7 ± 0.5 ng cortisol/g dry feces; n = 179). In the natural habitat, potential stressors included predation risk, particularly in areas …

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Baselines To Detect Population Stability Of Threatened Alpine Plant Packera Franciscana (Asteraceae), James F. Fowler, Carolyn Hull Sieg, Shaula Hedwall

Western North American Naturalist

Population size and density estimates have traditionally been acceptable ways to track species’ response to changing environments; however, species’ population centroid elevation has recently been an equally important metric. Packera franciscana (Greene) W.A. Weber and Á. Löve (Asteraceae; San Francisco Peaks ragwort) is a single mountain endemic plant found only in upper treeline and alpine talus habitats of the San Francisco Peaks in northern Arizona and is listed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as a Threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. We used 2 recreational trails, which pass through its elevational distribution in the Kachina Peaks Wilderness …

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Uncertain Path: A Search For The Future Of National Parks By William C. Tweed, Julia J. Hicks

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

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Analysis Of Anti-Dengue Antibodies, Lauren Syndergaard, Brian Poole

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Dengue virus is a mosquitoes-borne virus that causes dengue fever. It is found primarily in tropical areas with over a third of the world’s population living in at-risk areas (WHO). The number of infections has grown rapidly in recent years with as many as 50 to 100 million infections occur each year (WHO). Though not widely present in the United States (small outbreaks occur with some regularity in Texas from the Mexican border; Hawaii and Florida relatively recently had cases), many travelers endemic areas contract the virus. Though several are being studied, as yet, there are no vaccines available for …

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Rare Genetic Variant To The Protection Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Josue David Gonzalez Murcia, John Kauwe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Alzheimer’s disease is one of the top 10 causes of death in the world and the 6th leading cause of death in the United States, with 5.5 million people diagnosed with the disease. Alzheimer’s cannot be cured, prevented or slowed. Most research with Alzheimer’s disease has been done on SNPs that have a relatively high frequency in the population this has helped facilitate researchers in finding a broad genetic pathway in the development of Alzheimer’s disease (Naj et al. 2011; Harold et al. 2009). Our research will focus on a very rare SNP, with a much lower frequency than previously …

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Engineering A Pathogen Specific High Affinity T-Cell Receptor Called Llo56, John Hancock, Dr. Scott Weber

Journal of Undergraduate Research

CD4+ helper T-cells play a vital role in the body’s immune response. When infectious agents attack the body, phagocytes engulf these invaders and present a peptide segment of the pathogen on a receptor (called MHCII). These receptors are located on the surface of the cell and the displayed peptide is termed an epitope. CD4+ T-cells with T-cell receptors (TCRs) specific for the displayed peptide bind to the MHCII complex. It is this binding that releases chemical signals to initiate an immune response. A disadvantage of TCRs is that their wild-type affinity for MHC is low and that they are membrane …

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Discovery And Characterization Of Bacteriophage To Control Mrsa, Jacob B. Hatch, Bradford Berges

Journal of Undergraduate Research

About 20% of humans are carriers of Staphylococcus aureus (SA). There were an estimated 11,000 deaths in the United States in 2005 attributed to SA, with the majority caused by MRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) isolates [1]. Many MRSA isolates have developed resistance to all but one antibiotic drug: vancomycin. However, other bacteria have developed resistance to vancomycin, suggesting that in time MRSA will likewise become non-responsive to this last available drug and MRSA infections will be untreatable. This project looks to find an alternate method of MRSA treatment. Bacteriophage (phage) are viruses that infect bacterial cells in order …

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Use Of Humanized Mice To Study The Production Of Human Antibodies, Steven Hallam, Dr. Bradford Berges

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The human immune system is composed of two main subsets: innate and adaptive immunities. Among the adaptive immune cells, B cells play a vital role in stopping infectious agents through the production of antigen specific antibodies. Human B cells are important targets of infection for many human-specific viruses that are poorly understood. Since the infection and study of human subjects is not possible, animal models have been developed to mimic the human immune environment. Rag2-/-γc-/- mice engrafted with human hematopoietic stem cells produce human B lymphocytes and these cells are capable of mounting antigen-specific human antibody responses. However, there is …

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Mapping The Trigeminal Nerve, Kinnison Edmunds, Dr. Jonathan Wisco

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The goal of my project was to create a data-driven, three-dimensional map of the human trigeminal nerve from the trigeminal ganglion to the ends of its major pathways throughout the face and head. The purpose was to test conventional wisdom regarding the pathways of the trigeminal nerve and expose any inconsistencies between artistic representations and a data-driven mapping of the nerve. It was my hypothesis that by comparing my completed nerve map to the currently accepted anatomy literature, I will be able to challenge existing discrepancies and improve the validity of current anatomical representations.

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Microarchitectural Analysis Of The Ulnar Collateral Ligament To Inform Its Reconstruction, Jakob Gamboa, Dr. Jonathan Wisco

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Ligaments are specialized connective tissues that stabilize the different synovial joints found in the body. Ligaments consist of fibroblast cells surrounded by a framework of dense fibrous bands of collagen, which anchor to bones to provide support and elasticity. Their varying biomechanical functions in different locations of the body require diversity in matrix composition, shape, density, and arrangement to adapt to the complex functions they perform. These characteristics may even vary within different regions of the same ligament. Damage to ligaments compromises integrity and movement of the joint and can lead to serious complications.

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Customizing 3d Models From Mri Data: Creating Educational Anatomy Models Of Neurologic Disease, Brett Gardiner, Dr. Jon Wisco

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Neuroanatomy lab specimens are limited to cadaver availability and inconsistently demonstrate variations confronted in pathology. Using rapid prototyping (RP) technology to create 3D models from segmented MRI data offers distinct benefits to medical education. An efficient and replicable procedure for customizing these models can be developed to provide unique visual experiences for students and offer additional perspectives of brain models from real data.

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End Matter, Vol. 8

Monographs of the Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

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Front Matter, Vol. 8

Monographs of the Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

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Conservation Genetics Of Six Species Of Genus Dionda (Cyprinidae) In The Southwestern United States, Ashley H. Hanna, Evan W. Carson, Gary P. Garrett, John R. Gold

Monographs of the Western North American Naturalist

We examined allelic variation at nuclear-encoded microsatellites and sequences of mitochondrial (mt)DNA in 10 geographic samples representing 6 nominal species of the cyprinid genus Dionda. Species of Dionda are found in springs and spring-fed headwaters in the southwestern United States and Mexico and are of particular interest to conservation and management, in part because of their limited distribution and habitat specificity, and in part as indicator species of habitat quality. All 10 samples examined appear to be discrete, demographically independent populations, with greater observed FST values between or among samples within species (0.123–0.280) than threshold values above which demographic …

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Mapping Interaction Through Compensatory Phou Mutants In Escherichia Coli, Tanner Dean, William Mccleary

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this experiment was to identify the physical interaction site between two proteins in Escherichia Coli. These two proteins, PhoU and PhoR, are two proteins involved in Phosphate signal transduction. When these two proteins are mutated, so they no longer interact, the pathway is broken and signaling is inhibited. To break this pathway, we mutated one protein (PhoR) until we developed several mutations that no longer interact with PhoU. This loss of interaction is caused by a physical change to the site of interaction between the two proteins. We hypothesized that we could find a naturally occurring PhoU …

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Transferring Hypothetical Deductive Reasoning, Jordan Hatch, Jamie L. Jensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of our project was to understand if hypothetical deductive (HD) reasoning skills exist in each discipline and if so, whether they are transferable between disciplines. HD reasoning is the method of scientific investigation used most commonly by scientists. It includes formulating hypotheses, devising experiments, making predictions, and analyzing results (iSTAR 2013). Many science classes boast scientific reasoning as a main learning outcome, but does reasoning transfer between disciplines and thus benefit the person as a whole? We hypothesized that most, if not all, disciplines use HD reasoning. In addition, we hypothesized that because this skill is context independent …

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Do Differently Managed Dairy Cows With Production-Related Metabolic Diseases Have Similar Protein And Fat Species In Colostrum And Milk?, Holly Martin, Dr. Beverly Roeder

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Production-related metabolic diseases (PRMDs) in dairy cows threaten the livelihood of the animals as well as the productivity and success of the dairy industry. Because dairy cows supply an important food source for humans, understanding, managing, and preventing these diseases protects this source. Management and prevention of these diseases would increase production and profit margins for the dairy industry.

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Biological Control Of Agrilus Liragus Through Entomopathogenic Fungi, John Watkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research

This project was funded with the intent that possible biological controls could be found to control the population explosions of bark boring beetles. We hypothesized that due to the prevalence of beetle outbreaks in the West, we would find enough Agrilus liragus specimens to culture native entomopathogenic fungi. We hoped to sequence that fungi and hypothesized that there would be new species of pathogenic fungi that is specific to Agrilus liragus. Through our fieldwork we were not able to find sufficient numbers of Agrilus liragus to accomplish these goals. What we did find were high levels of the tree …

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Investigating The Effect Of Ethanol On Exocytosis In Vitro, Brady Hunt, Dixon Woodbury

Journal of Undergraduate Research

My research focus has been to investigate how ethanol’s pharmacological effects could be tied to it’s interactions with a key component of all cellular membranes, lipid bilayers.

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Fire Blight Treatment With Lytic Bacteriophage, Todd Jarvis, Julianne Grose

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Fire Blight, caused by the bacteria Erwinia amylovora, is a highly contagious fruit tree disease that is difficult to treat. This disease causes a tree to whither away, as if it had been burned. It is estimated that Fire Blight causes more than a 100 million dollar loss in agricultural goods each year¹. In an attempt to treat fire blight and prevent it from spreading, large doses of antibiotics are sprayed on infected trees. These antibiotics do little in the way of helping to treat the trees. In addition, the antibiotic run off from the treatment finds …

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Optimization Of Selenium Chemoprevention In Prostate Cancer Cells, Xiuqi Li, Merrill Christensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer and the second-leading cause of cancer death in men in the United States (1). However, most men will die with prostate cancer rather then from it (2). Because prostate cancer exhibits a long latency period, high incidence rate, and significant morbidity but low mortality, its prevention remains an active field of research.

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Ventral Tegmental Area Dopamine And Gaba Neurons: Physiological Properties And Expression Of Mrna For Endocannabinoid Biosynthetic Enzymes And Type I Metabotropic Glutamate Receptors, Zachary Hopkins, Jeffrey G. Edwards

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The ventral tegmental area or VTA is considered to be one of the foremost centers involved in motivation and reward processing in the brain [1]. This area is also heavily implicated in addiction. However, little is known in regards to the exact cell types and subtypes found there, or the types of signaling that occur. We were interested in investigating the possibility of retrograde signaling among the two predominant cell groups in the VTA: GABA and dopamine neurons. Both cell types can be acted on by drugs of abuse, either to directly affect DA release or indirectly through GABA cells …

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Novel Comet Assay Identifies Preliminary Dna Damage Prior To Cell Apoptosis In Mouse Model Of Rage Over-Expression, Steven Knapp, Paul Reynolds

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The goal of this project was to characterize the predisposing susceptibility of mice that overexpress receptors for advanced gylcation end products (RAGE) to apoptosis (cell death) and autophagy. Work has already been done to characterize this mouse model as pro-apoptotic; this new project will allow us to identify powerful markers that track DNA damage prior to cell death. RAGE is found in the lungs and aids in the transitioning of cell types (Reynolds P et Al., 2011). The expression of RAGE increases during instances of disease including COPD, diabetes, and lung cancer (Celli BR et Al., 2004, Wu L et …

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3d Mapping Of Cardiac Nerves For Improved Cardiac Ablation Procedures In The Treatment Of Cardiac Arrhythmia, Adam Jorgensen, Jonathan J. Wisco

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Arrhythmia is a serious heart condition that affects 14 million people in the United Statesⁱ, and is characterized by irregular frequency of atrial and ventricular beats.ⁱⁱ The most serious effects of arrhythmia include sudden cardiac arrest and stroke.ⁱⁱⁱ About 383,000 cases of cardiac arrest are recorded annually in the United States alone.^iv In a report complied in 2011 by the World Health Organization, stroke has the second highest death rate of any disease worldwide, ending the lives of 6.1 million people annually.^v

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Biological Control Of Agrilus Liragus Through Entomopathogenic Fungi, John Watkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research

This project was funded with the intent that possible biological controls could be found to control the population explosions of bark boring beetles. We hypothesized that due to the prevalence of beetle outbreaks in the West, we would find enough Agrilus liragus specimens to culture native entomopathogenic fungi. We hoped to sequence that fungi and hypothesized that there would be new species of pathogenic fungi that is specific to Agrilus liragus. Through our fieldwork we were not able to find sufficient numbers of Agrilus liragus to accomplish these goals. What we did find were high levels of the tree …

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Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network

Front Matter, Vol. 75 No. 1

Western North American Naturalist

Ten Thousand Birds: Ornithology Since Darwin By Tim Birkhead, Jo Wimpenny, And Bob Montgomerie, Howard O. Clark Jr.

Western North American Naturalist

Precision Of Hard Structures Used To Estimate Age Of Mountain Whitefish (Prosopium Williamsoni), Carson J. Watkins, Tyler J. Ross, Ryan S. Hardy, Michael C. Quist

Western North American Naturalist

Tolerance Values And Effects Of Selected Environmental Determinants On Diatom Distribution In Northwest And North Central Washington, Usa, Dean W. Blinn

Western North American Naturalist

Molecular Systematics Of Nyctinomops (Chiroptera: Molossidae), Richard W. Dolman, Loren K. Ammerman

Western North American Naturalist

Fecal Glucocorticoid Levels Of Endangered San Joaquin Kit Foxes (Vulpes Macrotis Mutica) In Natural And Urban Habitats, Julia L. Nelson, Scott Creel, Brian L. Cypher

Western North American Naturalist

Baselines To Detect Population Stability Of Threatened Alpine Plant Packera Franciscana (Asteraceae), James F. Fowler, Carolyn Hull Sieg, Shaula Hedwall

Western North American Naturalist

Uncertain Path: A Search For The Future Of National Parks By William C. Tweed, Julia J. Hicks

Western North American Naturalist

Analysis Of Anti-Dengue Antibodies, Lauren Syndergaard, Brian Poole

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Rare Genetic Variant To The Protection Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Josue David Gonzalez Murcia, John Kauwe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Engineering A Pathogen Specific High Affinity T-Cell Receptor Called Llo56, John Hancock, Dr. Scott Weber

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Discovery And Characterization Of Bacteriophage To Control Mrsa, Jacob B. Hatch, Bradford Berges

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Use Of Humanized Mice To Study The Production Of Human Antibodies, Steven Hallam, Dr. Bradford Berges

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Mapping The Trigeminal Nerve, Kinnison Edmunds, Dr. Jonathan Wisco

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Microarchitectural Analysis Of The Ulnar Collateral Ligament To Inform Its Reconstruction, Jakob Gamboa, Dr. Jonathan Wisco

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Customizing 3d Models From Mri Data: Creating Educational Anatomy Models Of Neurologic Disease, Brett Gardiner, Dr. Jon Wisco

Journal of Undergraduate Research

End Matter, Vol. 8

Monographs of the Western North American Naturalist

Front Matter, Vol. 8

Monographs of the Western North American Naturalist

Conservation Genetics Of Six Species Of Genus Dionda (Cyprinidae) In The Southwestern United States, Ashley H. Hanna, Evan W. Carson, Gary P. Garrett, John R. Gold

Monographs of the Western North American Naturalist

Mapping Interaction Through Compensatory Phou Mutants In Escherichia Coli, Tanner Dean, William Mccleary

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Transferring Hypothetical Deductive Reasoning, Jordan Hatch, Jamie L. Jensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Do Differently Managed Dairy Cows With Production-Related Metabolic Diseases Have Similar Protein And Fat Species In Colostrum And Milk?, Holly Martin, Dr. Beverly Roeder

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Biological Control Of Agrilus Liragus Through Entomopathogenic Fungi, John Watkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Investigating The Effect Of Ethanol On Exocytosis In Vitro, Brady Hunt, Dixon Woodbury

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Fire Blight Treatment With Lytic Bacteriophage, Todd Jarvis, Julianne Grose

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Optimization Of Selenium Chemoprevention In Prostate Cancer Cells, Xiuqi Li, Merrill Christensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Ventral Tegmental Area Dopamine And Gaba Neurons: Physiological Properties And Expression Of Mrna For Endocannabinoid Biosynthetic Enzymes And Type I Metabotropic Glutamate Receptors, Zachary Hopkins, Jeffrey G. Edwards

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Novel Comet Assay Identifies Preliminary Dna Damage Prior To Cell Apoptosis In Mouse Model Of Rage Over-Expression, Steven Knapp, Paul Reynolds

Journal of Undergraduate Research

3d Mapping Of Cardiac Nerves For Improved Cardiac Ablation Procedures In The Treatment Of Cardiac Arrhythmia, Adam Jorgensen, Jonathan J. Wisco

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Biological Control Of Agrilus Liragus Through Entomopathogenic Fungi, John Watkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research