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The Evolution Of Dietary Adaptations In Small Mammals: From Muscles To Microbes, Mark Thomas Swanson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

My dissertation provides critical insights on the pattern and process of evolution in front-end and back-end dietary adaptations of mammals. I found that the position of the rodent masseter muscle, a complex front-end adaptation that improves the efficiency of mechanical digestion, has convergently evolved numerous times, suggesting that selective pressure for this adaptation has been strong. For back-end adaptations, I found gut bacterial taxa that likely aid in chemical digestion of food have predictable associations with host diet across host species in natural environments. To detect patterns in gut microbial community structure that are related to host factors such as …

A Semiotic Approach To Visual Analysis Of Dress: Symbolic Communication Of Clothing Color, Cut, And Composition Through The French Film Costumes Of Anaïs Romand, Leigh Danielle Honeycutt

LSU Master's Theses

This study examines the communicative role of clothing in film. Using the skillful costume canvas of French designer Anaïs Romand, we explore the possible visual messages and potential cultural and linguistic meanings that clothing choice conveys. This analysis uses Roland Barthes’ Theory of the “Five Codes” from his book S/Z as well as psychological sources about color analysis as its methodological basis. Images from each of the five period piece films were chosen and analyzed using semiotics. The costumes in all five films chosen for analysis were designed under the direction of Anaïs Romand and were all either nominated for, …

Optimization Of Mechanical Properties At The Infarct Border Zone, Kaushik Sunder

LSU Master's Theses

A myocardial infarction (MI) occurs every 39 seconds in the United States. As of 2016, an estimated 550,000 new and 200,000 recurrent episodes of myocardial infarction (MI) occur each year in the United States was. Infarction is often distinguished by a considerable decrease in wall thickness and an increase in heart size or left ventricular volume. This behavior happens when there is a prolonged lack of blood flow, usually due to damage or clotting, which causes cardiomyocytes to die (CMs). The development of non-contractile infarct scarring is the primary pathophysiology of MI. While the infarct scar prevents myocardial rupture during …

Initial Investigations Into Tools For Phytoremediation Of Lead From Urban And Suburban Landscapes, Michael Taylor Bryant

LSU Master's Theses

Lead is a pervasive and ongoing problem in the landscape, especially in urban and suburban areas where historic use of tetraethyl lead gasoline and leaded paint has increased background amounts to dangerous levels. One method to solve this problem is the use of hyperaccumulator plant species, capable of concentrating over 1000 ppm Pb into their tissues. This is a slow process, even with hyperaccumulators, so the use of amendments to improve Pb solubility has gained popularity, though with mixed results. This study examined Trachelospermum asiaticum, Ardisia japonica, and Ophiopogon japonicus, three common landscape groundcovers used in Louisiana, …

The Influence Of Pine Management On Grassland-Nesting Songbirds Wintering In The Southeastern United States, Nancy M. Raginski

LSU Master's Theses

In the southeastern U.S., pine forests cover ~28 million ha and are most often used for commercial timber and hunting. Management practices used to reach desired vegetative conditions in these forests may simultaneously influence distributions of overwintering songbirds, including several grassland-nesting songbirds. From December to February of 2018 and 2019 and December of 2020, I surveyed longleaf (Pinus palustris) and loblolly pine (P. taeda) stands burned 0–7 years ago to examine the influence of pine management on grassland-nesting birds overwintering in central Louisiana. I used single-season occupancy and N-mixture models to examine occupancy and abundance of …

Late Embryogenesis Abundant Proteins And Mitochondrial Membranes From An Animal Extremophile: Insights Into Severe Water Stress, John Marcus Anderson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation focuses on two major topics germane to mechanisms by which animals tolerate extreme water stress. First, the impact of transgenic expression of late embryogenesis abundant proteins (LEA) on water stress tolerance of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster was investigated. The overall aim was to extend current understanding of the protective properties of LEA proteins documented with isolated cells to a desiccation-sensitive organism during exposure to drying and hyperosmotic stress. Four lines of D. melanogaster were created that expressed transgenes encoding selected LEA proteins originally identified in embryos of the extremophile Artemia franciscana. After 80% tissue water loss, …

The Relationship Between Emotion Regulation And Substance Use Treatment Attrition, Melanie Ruth Roys

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Severe substance use disorders are characterized by chronic cycles of relapse; however, individuals who complete substance use treatment are less likely to experience relapse. Research has focused on trying to identify factors that predict treatment dropout to help improve treatment outcomes. Most of this research has focused on examining demographic and patient-specific factors, with little success in reliably predicting treatment attrition. There has been less focus on investigating transdiagnostic factors that span across discrete psychological diagnoses and demographics. The present study sought to determine if self-report and behavioral measures related to emotion regulation predicted inpatient substance use treatment dropout above …

The Innocence Of Lennie Small In Carlisle Floyd's Opera Of Mice And Men In Excerpts Presented As A Performer's Guide, Michael Robert Hendrick

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Of Mice and Men is a 20th century American opera composed by Carlisle Floyd. Carlisle Floyd also served as librettist, as he did with all of his operas. Based on the American novel of the same name by John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men is Carlisle Floyd's second most performed opera. This project serves to demonstrate the innocence of the role of Lennie Small, as seen through his intellectual shortcomings, enhanced by the vocal line and music of the composer. A performer's guide is also provided.

Embryo Development And Reproductive Parameters Of Aluteal Cycles In Mares, Chun Kuen Mak

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Progestagen is crucial for regulating early pregnancy in most mammalian species, including the horse. This dissertation research sought to elucidate the effect of endogenous and exogenous progestagens on the early development of equine embryos and to characterize reproductive parameters in the subsequent estrus using a prostaglandin F_2α-induced hypoluteal environment, namely the aluteal pregnancy model. The first chapter reviewed the life cycle of the corpus luteum and its progesterone secretory function in mares. The existing literature supports the notion that the early developing corpus luteum is responsive to prostaglandin F_2α, and complete luteolysis or prevention of luteal …

Potential Role Of Acetylation On Equine Sperm Capacitation, Luis H. De Aguiar

LSU Master's Theses

A series of biochemical and physical modifications in the sperm during the transport in the female reproductive tract that make the sperm capable of fertilization are called capacitation. It is an important process since ejaculated sperm is not capable of fertilizing an oocyte before capacitation. The sperm modifications during the capacitation process include changes in membrane fluidity, tyrosine phosphorylation, calcium influx, pH increase and hyperpolarization, leading the sperm to achieve hypermotility and the acrosome reaction, which are also required for conventional in vitrofertilization (IVF). In vitro production of embryos leading to viable offspring has been successful in different …

Isolation Of Foliar Fungi From Roseau Cane (Phragmites Australis) In Coastal Louisiana, David M. Galo Espinal

LSU Master's Theses

Roseau cane (Phragmites australis) is a wild plant with an extensive root system that is useful in areas vulnerable to soil erosion. In Louisiana, this plant plays an important role protecting the coastal infrastructure of the lower Mississippi River delta (MRD). Currently, P. australis growing in the MRD is being affected by a die-off, which has been associated with several biotic and abiotic factors.

Plant pathogenic fungi is a biotic factor that negatively affect plant growth. Therefore, foliar fungi were isolated from plants growing in one die-off affected area (MRD) and two non-affected areas (Pecan Island and Manchac) …

Impact Of An Emergent Reading Skills Intervention On Letter Recognition And Phoneme Identification In Pre-Kindergarten Children, Laura K. Simmons

LSU Master's Theses

Research in the field of early literacy has demonstrated that letter recognition and phoneme identification are two necessary components of emergent reading skills (Casbergue & Strickland, 2016). Emergent literacy refers to the reading and writing skills that young children develop prior to learning traditional literacy skills and has been linked to increased literacy achievement (Justice & Pullen, 2003). This study focused solely on emergent reading skills. The purpose of the present study was to determine the effects of a targeted multi-sensory intervention on the emergent reading skills of letter recognition and phoneme identification using a multiple baseline design (Kazdin, 2011). …

Mechanical Properties And Microstructure Characteristics Of Alloy Parts Produced By Laser Powder Bed Fusion (Lpbf) Method, Hong Yao

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Additive manufacturing (AM) is a rapid prototyping technology to produce fully functional and complex designing objects. As one of the AM methods, Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) has gained the most attention from both academic researchers and industrial companies. During the LPBF process, metal powders are applied layer by layer, which can be 20 microns to 50 microns in thickness. After a layer is prepared, a high-power laser, which is commonly controlled by a scanning head, is used to selectively melt the interested area of a 2D geometry which is designed in a computer aided designing software. LPBF method can …

Effect Of Forage Management Strategies And Land Use Change On Nitrogen Budget And Soil Health Parameters In Pasture Systems, Yili Meng

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Pastures produce hay for livestock, and they conserve soil, water, and air resources. However, high nitrogen (N) fertilizer demands in pasture production have significant implication on greenhouse gas emission and environmental pollution. Appropriate forage management strategies can reduce environmental N loss and improve soil health, to enhance the long-term pasture productivity. Therefore, this study was carried out to investigate the effects of management strategies on N budgets and soil health parameters in subtropical pastures. Both field and laboratory experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of N stabilizers including urease inhibitor and nitrification inhibitor on pasture yield, greenhouse gas emission, …

Fisheries Food Webs: Quantifying Habitat-Use, Trophic Structure, And Energetic Pathways In Coastal Tanzania, Mario Fernando Hernandez

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Commercial and recreational fisheries are a valuable resource to millions of people around the world. Developing countries are particularly dependent on the revenue provided by locally harvested fish with total exports from these nations valued at $80 billion USD. For Tanzania, fisheries provide not only a source of revenue but an important source of protein with an estimated 25 to 30kg of fish consumed per person every year. There is no doubt that high fisheries production is critical to the well-being of millions of livelihoods along the Tanzanian coast. An important but poorly understood driver of fisheries production is the …

Environmental Perception In Colombia's Páramo Protected Areas, Juliana Delgado

LSU Master's Theses

This thesis analyzes the gap between farmers' environmental perceptions in Téquita, a small village in Colombia, and the definition of protected areas has led to a conflict for the use of natural resources. I examine if the protected area's policies have dealt with the social and ecological issues in the páramos and recognized the social construction of the landscape, farmers' identities, and their interpretations about work and land. The case study focuses on Güina High Mountain in the Guantiva-La Rusia páramo complex, which recently the Colombian government declared as a protected area. In light of anthropologist Tim Ingold's meaning of …

Development Of A Perineural Injection Of The Caudal Cervical Spinal Nerve Roots In Horses, Jonuel A. Cruz-Sanabria

LSU Master's Theses

Neck pain in horses can result in lameness and poor performance and can occur from arthritis of cervical articular process joints (APJs). Current treatment consists of direct injection of corticosteroids into the cervical APJs; however, this does not alleviate pain in all horses. New bone formation around the APJ can also result in compression of the spinal nerve roots and pain. The purpose of this study was to develop an ultrasound-guided cervical perineural injection technique and assess the safety of performing the technique in normal healthy horses. An ultrasound-guided cervical perineural injection technique of the caudal cervical spinal nerve roots …

Effects Of Salinity On Eastern Oysters: Locating Lower-Salinity Tolerant Populations And Defining Resource Zones Suitable To Restoration, Fisheries, And Aquaculture., Lauren Swam

LSU Master's Theses

Eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica) provide valuable ecosystem services and support a productive commercial industry in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Declining abundance from water quality changes and other factors drives development of management and restoration strategies focused on a comprehensive, metapopulation approach. Identifying oyster resource zones based on water quality combined with selective breeding of oysters adapted to specific conditions provides strategies to support aquaculture development and ensure resilient oyster populations and high production. Using 2015-2019 satellite-derived continuous salinity and temperature data for coastal Louisiana, this work created maps defining oyster resource zones supportive of (1) broodstock sanctuary …

Development, Validation, And Testing Of A Self-Assessment Tool To Measure Beliefs, Attitudes And Food Safety Behaviors In Healthcare Foodservice Operations, Kathryn Toups Fakier

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Immunocompromised patients are often prescribed a neutropenic diet to reduce the intake of harmful microbial content. However research suggests it does not improve clinical outcomes when compared to a regular diet, is inconsistently defined and prescribed, and may even have adverse effects on a patient’s nutritional status and quality of life. To reflect evidenced-based practice, the Food and Drug Administration has suggested focusing on safe food handling practices rather than outdated dietary restrictions to reduce health risks. However, many healthcare institutions are reluctant to shift focus as it affects a high-risk patient population vulnerable to contracting a foodborne illness. In …

Habitat Use And Morphology Of Birds In "Intact" Amazonia Under Changing Climate, Vitek Jirinec

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Neotropical forests contain the core of global avian diversity. Of these, the Amazon rainforest is the largest, but ~20% has already been lost to deforestation, inspiring research into the effects of clearing and fragmentation on forest birds. These studies have consistently shown that insectivorous birds that forage on or near the ground are the most sensitive species to forest disturbance. As a preamble to our study, we synthesized bird capture data collected over 40 years within continuous forest far from human disturbance. Remarkably, we found that terrestrial and near-ground insectivores have shown substantial abundance declines even within primary forest. The …

Development And Initial Psychometric Properties Of The Cannabidiol Outcome Expectancies Questionnaire (Cbd-Oeq), Katherine Walukevich-Dienst

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In the United States, a growing number of adults are using products containing cannabidiol (CBD), a non-psychoactive cannabinoid marketed as a treatment for a large number of medical and mental health conditions, despite limited support for the efficacy of CBD for these conditions. Identification of CBD-related outcome expectancies (i.e., beliefs concerning the anticipated effects of using CBD) could be useful in understanding the etiology and maintenance of CBD use. Although there are several measures of cannabis outcome expectancies, no known CBD-specific outcome expectancy measure exists. The current study used a three phase, mixed methods approach to develop and test the …

Electrochemical Reduction Of Hexavalent Chromium In Acetonitrile Using Glassy Carbon Electrodes, Temitope Jegede

LSU Master's Theses

Hexavalent chromium Cr(VI), a form of chromium mainly generated through industrial processes, has attracted great research interests due to its severe toxicity to biological systems. A common way to remove hexavalent chromium from industrial wastes is through reduction to the non-toxic trivalent state. To this end, methods such as chemical reduction, chemical precipitation and coagulation have been used. However, these methods are limited by poor removal efficiency, formation of secondary pollutants (sludge), and are mostly applicable to aqueous solutions. Recently, electrochemical methods have been investigated for reducing hexavalent chromium, but there is a lack of data on the reduction of …

A Systematic Review Of Dietary Supplements And Alternative Therapies For Weight Loss, John A. Batsis, John W. Apolzan, Pamela J. Bagley, Heather B. Blunt, Vidita Divan, Sonia Gill, Angela Golden, Shalini Gundumraj, Steven B. Heymsfield, Scott Kahan, Katherine Kopatsis, Ava Port, Elizabeth Prout Parks, Clifford A. Reilly, Domenica Rubino, Katherine H. Saunders, Ryan Shean, Luai Tabaza, Abishek Stanley, Beverly G. Tchang, Shivani Gundumraj, Srividya Kidambi

Clinical Research Faculty Publications

Objective: Dietary supplements and alternative therapies are commercialized as a panacea for obesity/weight gain as a result of the minimal regulatory requirements in demonstrating efficacy. These products may indirectly undermine the value of guideline-driven obesity treatments. Included in this study is a systematic review of the literature of purported dietary supplements and alternative therapies for weight loss. Methods: A systematic review was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of dietary supplements and alternative therapies for weight loss in participants aged ≥18 years. Searches of Medline (PubMed), Cochrane Library, Web of Science, CINAHL, and Embase (Ovid) were conducted. Risk of bias and …

Louisiana Agriculture Summer, 2021, Lsu Agcenter

Louisiana Agriculture

No abstract provided.

Phylogenomic Analyses Reveal Non-Monophyly Of The Antbird Genera Herpsilochmus And Sakesphorus (Thamnophilidae), With Description Of A New Genus For Herpsilochmus Sellowi, G A. Bravo, B M. Whitney, R Belmonte-Lopes, M R. Bornschein, G A. Bravo, R Beco, J Battilana, L N. Naka, A Aleixo, M R. Pie, L F. Silveira, E P. Derryberry, R T. Brumfield

Faculty Publications

The family Thamnophilidae is a species-rich Neotropical radiation of passerine birds. Current classification of its 235 species is mostly based on morphological similarities, but recent studies integrating comprehensive phenotypic and phylogenetic data have redefined taxonomic limits of several taxa. Here, we assess generic relationships of Herpsilochmus, Sakesphorus, Thamnophilus, Biatas, and Dysithamnus using DNA sequences from the mitochondrion, nuclear exons, and ultraconserved elements, with further attention to interspecific relationships within Herpsilochmus. We show that Herpsilochmus and Sakesphorus are not monophyletic. We resolve Herpsilochmus sellowi as a deep-branch sister to the monotypic genus Biatas and Sakesphorus cristatus as sister to a clade …

Changes In The Microbial Community In Soybean Plots Treated With Biochar And Poultry Litter, Rosalie B. Calderon, Changyoon Jeong, Hyun Hwoi Ku, Lyndon M. Coghill, Young Jeong Ju, Nayong Kim, Jong Hyun Ham

Faculty Publications

The application of organic materials that promote beneficial microbial activity is vital to maintaining soil health and crop productivity. We investigated the effect on the soil microbiome of applying biochar (BC), poultry litter (PL), and a combination of biochar and poultry litter (BC/PL) in soybean cultivation at the Red River Research Station (Bossier City, LA, USA). We characterized the microbial profiles, community structure, and co-occurrence network from sequencing data to infer microbial interactions in the soil samples collected in the first and second years of each soil treatment (2016 and 2017, respectively). Our results showed that soil treatments with BC, …

Reciprocal Control Of Obesity And Anxiety–Depressive Disorder Via A Gaba And Serotonin Neural Circuit, Guobin Xia, Yong Han, Fantao Meng, Yanlin He, Dollada Srisai, Monica Farias, Minghao Dang, Richard D. Palmiter, Yong Xu, Qi Wu

Division of Basic Science Faculty Publications

The high comorbidity between obesity and mental disorders, such as depression and anxiety, often exacerbates metabolic and neurological symptoms significantly. However, neural mechanisms that underlie reciprocal control of feeding and mental states are largely elusive. Here we report that melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R) neurons located in the dorsal bed nucleus of the stria terminus (dBNST) engage in the regulation of mentally associated weight gain by receiving GABAergic projections from hypothalamic AgRP neurons onto α5-containing GABAA receptors and serotonergic afferents onto 5-HT3 receptors. Chronic treatment with a high-fat diet (HFD) significantly blunts the hyperexcitability of AgRP neurons in response to not …

Stable Isotope Analyses Identify Trophic Niche Partitioning Between Sympatric Terrestrial Vertebrates In Coastal Saltmarshes With Differing Oiling Histories, Sydney Moyo, Hayat Bennadji, Danielle Laguaite, Anna A. Pérez-Umphrey, Allison M. Snider, Andrea Bonisoli-Alquati, Jill A. Olin, Philip C. Stouffer, Sabrina S. Taylor, Paola C. López-Duarte, Brian J. Roberts, Linda Hooper-Bui, Michael J. Polito

Faculty Publications

Bioindicator species are commonly used as proxies to help identify the ecological effects of oil spills and other stressors. However, the utility of taxa as bioindicators is dependent on understanding their trophic niche and life history characteristics, as these factors mediate their ecological responses. Seaside sparrows (Ammospiza maritima) and marsh rice rats (Oryzomys palustris) are two ubiquitous terrestrial vertebrates that are thought to be bioindicators of oil spills in saltmarsh ecosystems. To improve the utility of these omnivorous taxa as bioindicators, we used carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis to quantify their trophic niches at saltmarshes in coastal Louisiana with …

Molecular Evolution Of Ecological Specialisation: Genomic Insights From The Diversification Of Murine Rodents, Emily Roycroft, Anang Achmadi, Colin M. Callahan, Jacob A. Esselstyn, Jeffrey M. Good, Adnan Moussalli, Kevin C. Rowe

Faculty Publications

Adaptive radiations are characterized by the diversification and ecological differentiation of species, and replicated cases of this process provide natural experiments for understanding the repeatability and pace ofmolecular evolution.During adaptive radiation, genes related to ecological specialization may be subject to recurrent positive directional selection. However, it is not clear to what extent patterns of lineage-specific ecological specialization (includingphenotypic convergence) are correlatedwithsharedsignatures of molecular evolution. To test this, we sequenced whole exomes from a phylogenetically dispersed sample of 38 murine rodent species, a group characterized bymultiple, nested adaptive radiations comprising extensive ecological and phenotypic diversity.We found that genes associatedwithimmunity, reproduction, diet, …

Optimizing Genomic-Enabled Prediction In Small-Scale Maize Hybrid Breeding Programs: A Roadmap Review, Roberto Fritsche-Neto, Giovanni Galli, Karina Lima Reis Borges, Germano Costa-Neto, Filipe Couto Alves, Felipe Sabadin, Danilo Hottis Lyra, Pedro Patric Pinho Morais, Luciano Rogério Braatz De Andrade, Italo Granato, Jose Crossa

Faculty Publications

The usefulness of genomic prediction (GP) for many animal and plant breeding programs has been highlighted for many studies in the last 20 years. In maize breeding programs, mostly dedicated to delivering more highly adapted and productive hybrids, this approach has been proved successful for both large- and small-scale breeding programs worldwide. Here, we present some of the strategies developed to improve the accuracy of GP in tropical maize, focusing on its use under low budget and small-scale conditions achieved for most of the hybrid breeding programs in developing countries. We highlight the most important outcomes obtained by the University …