Digital Commons Network^™

The Relationship Between Family Environment And Specific Phobias, Jerrica Renee Guidry

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Specific phobias are the most prevalent disorder among adults and highly common among children. Additionally, specific phobias diagnosed in childhood has been associated other serious mental illnesses later in life (de Vrie et al., 2019). Research pertaining to parenting factors associated with anxiety disorders has been extensive, including parental psychopathology, parent-child relationships, parental control, and parental stress. However, less emphasis has been placed on familial factors which may contribute to the development and maintenance of specific phobias. According to the limited literature focusing on the family factors associated with specific phobias, parent psychopathology and parent over-control are important factors. Multiple …

Does Well-Being Moderate The Association Of Harm Avoidance With Cognitive Decline, Christopher Reed

LSU Master's Theses

The Dual-Factor Model of mental health highlights the need to consider both constructs associated with psychopathology and subjective well-being in relation to clinical outcomes. Harm avoidance, which is associated with behavioral inhibition, has been negatively associated with cognitive change. While subjective well-being has been positively associated with cognition. The current study aimed to examine both constructs in a single model to examine well-being as a moderator of the association of harm avoidance with cognitive decline. A sample of 728 older adults from the Rush University Memory and Aging Project was used. Participants completed batteries of questionnaires and neuropsychological tests at …

Screening Soybean Cultivars For Resistance To Aerial Blight Caused By Rhizoctonia Solani Ag1-Ia, Kensy D. Rodriguez-Herrera

LSU Master's Theses

Aerial blight, caused by the fungus Rhizoctonia solani AG1-IA, is an economically important soybean disease in the mid-South. The same pathogen also infects other crops commonly rotated with soybeans like rice, corn, and grain sorghum. Rhizoctonia solani AG1-IA is difficult to manage because of its soilborne nature and the production of long-term survival structures, sclerotia. Management has relied on fungicide applications during the season. Still, there is an increasing prevalence of resistance to commonly used strobilurin fungicides and an urgent need to identify soybean cultivars resistant to aerial blight. Since the patchy distribution of the pathogen complicates field cultivar screening, …

Characterization Of Electrophoretic Deposited Zinc Oxide Nanopartices For The Fabrication Of Next-Generation Nanoscale Electronic Applications, Fawwaz Abduh A. Hazzazi

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Several reports state that it is crucial to analyze nanoscale semiconductor materials and devices with potential benefits to meet the need for next-generation nanoelectronics, bio, and nanosensors. The progress in the electronics field is as significant now, with modern technology constantly evolving and a greater focus on more efficient robust optoelectronic applications. This dissertation focuses on the study and examination of the practicality of Electrophoretic Deposition (EPD) of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles (NPs) for use in semiconductor applications.

The feasibility of several synthesized electrolytes, with and without surfactants and APTES surface functionalization, is discussed. The primary objective of this study …

Insights Into The Speciation Process From Genomic And Phenotypic Analysis Of An Avian Hybrid Zone In Amazonia, Glaucia Christina Del-Rio

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Understanding the outcome of secondary contact is essential to shed light on the mechanisms governing species formation and maintenance. In Amazonia, closely related bird taxa with limited dispersal abilities are often separated by rivers, which presumably act as dispersal barriers. However, at the headwaters, rivers cease to be dispersal barriers, and this generates opportunities for secondary contact. In my dissertation, I studied genomic mechanisms associated with phenotypic differences, mitochondrial DNA structure, and putative reproductive barriers between two hybridizing Amazonian bird species in the genus Rhegmatorhina, a group of antbirds that find their arthropod prey exclusively by following army-ant swarms. …

Scale Up Of A Novel Method To Maximize Malonyl-Coa In Escherichia Coli, Clifford Harris Leblanc Iv

LSU Master's Theses

The instability of oil’s price along with its limited availability and impact on the environment motivate the search for an alternative feedstock that can sustain the profitability of chemical companies. Industrial biotechnology can promote renewable sources of energy and products by using microorganisms to produce a wide range of chemical compounds. The three-carbon metabolite, malonyl-CoA, can serve as a precursor to a variety of industrial chemicals. The major hurdle with using malonyl-CoA in industry is that its intracellular concentration in Escherichia Coli is very low. Previous attempts to increase the intracellular level of malonyl-CoA have ranged from genetic engineering of …

Analysis Of Geographic Variability Of Fecal Microbiomes Of Fratercula Arctica And Cross-Comparison Of Fecal Microbiomes Of Different Avian Feeding Types, Eric Jose Ramon Martinez

LSU Master's Theses

Gastrointestinal (gut) microbiota have a multitude of effects on their host, from aiding in digestion, to facilitating nutrient uptake, detoxification, and interactions with the immune system. Multiple factors have been identified that influence the composition of vertebrate microbiomes; these include host genetics, environmental conditions, diet and age, sex, and geography. However, broad inferences about wild avian gut microbial diversity and function under natural conditions are limited. Most knowledge on avian microbiomes is derived from studies on domestic poultry. Information on non-model taxa may provide important contextual information about vertebrate host-microbiome interactions and aid in future management of vulnerable species. Here, …

Micro Heat Exchanger To Cool Cerebrospinal Fluid For Brain Injury Treatment, Sachin Dahiya

LSU Master's Theses

Hypothermia is accepted as a method to preserve cells and tissue. Clinical evidence shows that administration of hypothermia could lead to neuroprotection after cardiac arrest. Non-invasive methods such as surface cooling devices, drugs and cold liquid ventilation are available to induce hypothermia. These approaches for achieving hypothermia have not been optimized yet. The surface cooling methods are generally slow and may lead to additional thermal shock to the body. Here, we propose a rapid, selective cooling method for the brain using a micro heat exchanger to cool the cerebrospinal fluids (CSF). We designed and 3D printed a U-type heat exchanger …

Cover Cropping: Sensor-Based Estimations Of Biomass Yield And Nutrient Uptake And Its Impact On Sugarcane Productivity, Hector H. Fajardo Duran

LSU Master's Theses

Sugarcane in Louisiana can be harvested for up to three years from one planting. Soil cultivation along sides of established beds is done for weed control and improve fertilizer use efficiency which increases the risk of soil degradation and yield decline. Planting cover crops (CC) is a soil conservation practice and an effective strategy to improve soil health and nutrient recycling. Limited work has been done on remote sensor-based evaluation of the potential nutrient benefits from cover crops and its effect on nutrient cycling on sugarcane systems. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of two planting methods (broadcast …

The Importance Of Co2 Recapture In The Co2 Concentrating Mechanism Of Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii, Ashwani Rai

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The aim of this thesis is to investigate the CO₂ concentrating mechanism (CCM) of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and to develop a quick method for estimating the activity of carbonic anhydrases (CAs). The first project demonstrates that there are two almost identical mitochondrial CAs in C. reinhardtii, CAH4 and CAH5, that help to maintain photosynthesis and minimize the leak of CO₂ generated by respiration and photorespiration. We used an RNAi approach to reduce the expression of CAH4 and CAH5 so that their physiological functions could be studied. RNAi mutants with low expression of CAH4 and CAH5 have impaired rates …

Capturing Wheat Phenotypes At The Genome Level, Babar Hussain, Bala A. Akpınar, Michael Alaux, Ahmed M. Algharib, Deepmala Sehgal, Zulfiqar Ali, Gudbjorg I. Aradottir, Jacqueline Batley, Arnaud Bellec, Alison R. Bentley, Halise B. Cagirici, Luigi Cattivelli, Fred Choulet, James Cockram, Francesca Desiderio, Pierre Devaux, Munevver Dogramaci, Gabriel Dorado, Susanne Dreisigacker, David Edwards, Khaoula El-Hassouni, Kellye Eversole, Tzion Fahima, Melania Figueroa, Sergio Gálvez, Kulvinder S. Gill, Liubov Govta, Alvina Gul, Goetz Hensel, Pilar Hernandez, Leonardo Abdiel Crespo-Herrera, Amir Ibrahim, Benjamin Kilian

Faculty Publications

Recent technological advances in next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies have dramatically reduced the cost of DNA sequencing, allowing species with large and complex genomes to be sequenced. Although bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is one of the world’s most important food crops, efficient exploitation of molecular marker-assisted breeding approaches has lagged behind that achieved in other crop species, due to its large polyploid genome. However, an international public–private effort spanning 9 years reported over 65% draft genome of bread wheat in 2014, and finally, after more than a decade culminated in the release of a gold-standard, fully annotated reference wheat-genome assembly …

Chloride Channels That Mediate A Transient Nitric Oxide-Dependent Synaptic Polarity Switch In Retinal Amacrine Cells., Tyler Christopher Rodriguez

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Cytosolic chloride (Cl^-) concentration determines whether GABAergic and glycinergic synapses are inhibitory or excitatory. Ionotropic GABA and glycine receptors passively conduct Cl­^- leading to membrane depolarization or hyperpolarization depending on the Cl^- equilibrium potential. Accordingly, the distribution of Cl^- across the plasma membrane has the potential to determine the properties of networks of retinal amacrine cells (ACs) and their postsynaptic partners. Ion channels are responsible for establishing Cl^- reversal potential. Nitric oxide (NO) is a signaling molecule that can be generated in the inner retina where ACs form synapses. We have shown that NO …

Breeding Ecology Of Mottled Ducks In Southwestern Louisiana, Elizabeth Sophia Bonczek

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Mottled ducks are a resident species found in the southern United States that rely on coastal marsh and associated habitat to fulfill the needs of the entirety of their annual cycle. Population monitoring has revealed declines in western Gulf Coast (WGC) mottled ducks since 2008. Mottled duck populations are influenced by survival and recruitment, and changes in these factors may contribute to population declines. The overarching goal of this project was to identify the mechanisms potentially limiting WGC mottled ducks.

I captured adult female mottled ducks during molt on Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge and adjacent lands in southwestern Louisiana from 2017–2019. …

Plastic And Evolved Responses In The Eastern Oyster, Crassostrea Virginica, To Environmental Variation In The Northern Gulf Of Mexico, Kyle Sirovy

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Climate change and other anthropogenic impacts are causing rapid alterations to many of the world’s most productive coastal ecosystems and there is an urgent need to understand how species will respond to these environmental changes. Organisms may respond through plasticity, evolution, or the evolution of plasticity. In this dissertation, I evaluate the role of plastic and evolved responses in the eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica, to environmental variation in the northern Gulf of Mexico. I use comparative transcriptomics, physiology, and morphology to examine the relative contribution of plastic and evolved responses for oysters exposed to low salinity and outplant sites …

The Alpha-7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Agonist Gts-21 Engages The Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Incretin Hormone Axis To Lower Levels Of Blood Glucose In Db/Db Mice, Qinghe Meng, Oleg G. Chepurny, Colin A. Leech, Napat Pruekprasert, Megan E. Molnar, James Jason Collier, Robert N. Cooney, George G. Holz

Division of Basic Science Faculty Publications

Aim: To establish if alpha-7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7nAChR) agonist GTS-21 exerts a blood glucose-lowering action in db/db mice, and to test if this action requires coordinate α7nAChR and GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R) stimulation by GTS-21 and endogenous GLP-1, respectively. Materials and Methods: Blood glucose levels were measured during an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) using db/db mice administered intraperitoneal GTS-21. Plasma GLP-1, peptide tyrosine tyrosine 1-36 (PYY1-36), glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide (GIP), glucagon, and insulin levels were measured by ELISA. A GLP-1R–mediated action of GTS-21 that is secondary to α7nAChR stimulation was evaluated using α7nAChR and GLP-1R knockout (KO) mice, or …

Acylsugars Protect Nicotiana Benthamiana Against Insect Herbivory And Desiccation, Honglin Feng, Lucia Acosta-Gamboa, Lars H. Kruse, Jake D. Tracy, Seung Ho Chung, Alba Ruth Nava Fereira, Sara Shakir, Hongxing Xu, Garry Sunter, Michael A. Gore, Clare L. Casteel, Gaurav D. Moghe, Georg Jander

Faculty Publications

Key message: Nicotiana benthamiana acylsugar acyltransferase (ASAT) is required for protection against desiccation and insect herbivory. Knockout mutations provide a new resource for investigation of plant-aphid and plant-whitefly interactions. Abstract: Nicotiana benthamiana is used extensively as a transient expression platform for functional analysis of genes from other species. Acylsugars, which are produced in the trichomes, are a hypothesized cause of the relatively high insect resistance that is observed in N. benthamiana. We characterized the N. benthamiana acylsugar profile, bioinformatically identified two acylsugar acyltransferase genes, ASAT1 and ASAT2, and used CRISPR/Cas9 mutagenesis to produce acylsugar-deficient plants for investigation of insect resistance …

Ethnic Discrimination And Alcohol-Related Problem Severity Among Hispanic/Latin Drinkers: The Role Of Social Anxiety In The Minority Stress Model, Julia D. Buckner, Elizabeth M. Lewis, Justin M. Shepherd, Michael J. Zvolensky

Faculty Publications

Introduction: Hispanic/Latin individuals in the U.S. experience many health disparities, including worse alcohol-related outcomes. Thus, identifying psycho-sociocultural factors that may play a role in alcohol-related problems among these individuals is vital to informing prevention and treatment efforts. Minority stress-based models of alcohol misuse posit that some Hispanic/Latin individuals may drink (and continue to drink despite drinking-related problems) to alleviate negative affect associated with experiencing ethnic discrimination. Yet, little research has directly tested this hypothesis. Given the social nature of both ethnic discrimination and drinking, it follows that experiencing more ethnic discrimination could be related to greater social anxiety and some …

Special Issue: Emerging Paradigms In Insulin Resistance, J. Jason Collier, Susan J. Burke

Division of Basic Science Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

From Soils To Streams: Connecting Terrestrial Carbon Transformation, Chemical Weathering, And Solute Export Across Hydrological Regimes, Hang Wen, Pamela L. Sullivan, Sharon A. Billings, Hoori Ajami, Alejandro Cueva, Alejandro Flores, Daniel R. Hirmas, Aaron N. Koop, Katie Murenbeeld, Xi Zhang, Li Li

Faculty Publications

Soil biota generates carbon that exports vertically to the atmosphere (CO2) and transports laterally to streams and rivers (dissolved organic and inorganic carbon, DOC and DIC). These processes, together with chemical weathering, vary with flow paths across hydrological regimes; yet an integrated understanding of these interactive processes is still lacking. Here we ask: How and to what extent do subsurface carbon transformation, chemical weathering, and solute export differ across hydrological and subsurface structure regimes? We address this question using a hillslope reactive transport model calibrated using soil CO2 and water chemistry data from Fitch, a temperate forest at the ecotone …

The Perfect Storm? Covid-19 And Substance Use Amongst Social Work Students In The Usa, Youn Kyoung Kim, Sung Seek Moon, Mansoo Yu, Mee Young Um, Arati Maleku, Omoshola Kehinde, David Pooler

Faculty Publications

During the COVID-19 pandemic, health risk behaviours related to substance use have been recognised as a significant public health concern amongst university students. Understanding the mechanisms of substance use behaviours, including those used to cope with COVID-19-related stressors, is imperative to curate targeted prevention efforts. To that end, we examined substance use prevalence and its associations with socio-demographic characteristics, preventive behaviours, and mental health amongst US social work students. We collected data from 457 students across all degree levels (BSW, MSW and PhD) from July to August 2020 through an online survey, to examine thirty-day patterns of substance use behaviours …

Alliance Of Randomized Trials Of Medicine Vs Metabolic Surgery In Type 2 Diabetes (Armms-T2d): Study Rationale, Design, And Methods, Donald C. Simonson, Bo Hu, David E. Arterburn, Philip R. Schauer, Sangeeta R. Kashyap, Anita P. Courcoulas, David E. Cummings, Mary Elizabeth Patti, William F. Gourash, Ashley H. Vernon, John M. Jakicic, John P. Kirwan

Division of Basic Science Faculty Publications

Aims: Long-term data from randomized clinical trials comparing metabolic (bariatric) surgery versus a medical/lifestyle intervention for treatment of patients with obesity/overweight and type 2 diabetes (T2D) are lacking. The Alliance of Randomized Trials of Medicine vs Metabolic Surgery in Type 2 Diabetes (ARMMS-T2D) is a consortium of four randomized trials designed to compare long-term efficacy and safety of surgery versus medical/lifestyle therapy on diabetes control and clinical outcomes. Materials and Methods: Patients with T2D and body mass index (BMI) of 27-45 kg/m2 who were previously randomized to metabolic surgery (Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, adjustable gastric band, or sleeve gastrectomy) versus medical/lifestyle …

Edwardsiella Ictaluri T3ss Effector Esen Modulates Expression Of Host Genes Involved In The Immune Response, Lidiya P. Dubytska, Ranjan Koirala, Azhia Sanchez, Ronald Thune

Faculty Publications

The type III secretion system (T3SS) effector EseN is encoded on the Edwardsiella ictaluri chromosome and is homologous to a family of T3SS effector proteins with phosphothreonine lyase activity. Previously we demonstrated that E. ictaluri invasion activates extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) early in the infection, which are subsequently inactivated by EseN. Com-parative transcriptomic analysis showed a total of 753 significant differentially expressed genes in head-kidney-derived macrophages (HKDM) infected with an EseN mutant (∆EseN) compared to HKDM infected with wild-type (WT) strains. This data strongly indicates classical activation of macrophages (the M1 phenotype) in response to E. ictaluri …

Low-Light Shadow Imaging Using Quadrature-Noise Detection With A Camera, Savannah L. Cuozzo, Pratik J. Barge, Nikunjkumar Prajapati, Narayan Bhusal, Hwang Lee, Lior Cohen, Irina Novikova, Eugeniy E. Mikhailov

Faculty Publications

This paper experimentally demonstrates an imaging technique based on quadrature noise modification after interaction with an opaque object. By using a homodyne-like detection scheme, the detrimental effect of the camera dark noise is eliminated, making this approach particularly attractive for imaging scenarios which require weak illumination. As an example, the image of an object illuminated with a squeezed vacuum is reconstructed using a total of 800 probing photons, utilizing less than one photon per frame on average.

Conditional Quantum Plasmonic Sensing, Fatemeh Mostafavi, Zeinab Jafari, Michelle L.J. Lollie, Chenglong You, Israel De Leon, Omar S. Magaña-Loaiza

Faculty Publications

The possibility of using weak optical signals to perform sensing of delicate samples constitutes one of the main goals of quantum photonic sensing. Furthermore, the nanoscale confinement of electromagnetic near fields in photonic platforms through surface plasmon polaritons has motivated the development of highly sensitive quantum plasmonic sensors. Despite the enormous potential of plasmonic platforms for sensing, this class of sensors is ultimately limited by the quantum statistical fluctuations of surface plasmons. Indeed, the fluctuations of the electromagnetic field severely limit the performance of quantum plasmonic sensing platforms in which delicate samples are characterized using weak near-field signals. Furthermore, the …

The Dual Nature Of The Nucleolus, Alan Tartakoff, Patrick Dimario, Eduard Hurt, Brian Mcstay, Vikram Govind Panse, David Tollervey

Faculty Publications

The nucleolus is best known for housing the highly ordered assembly line that produces ribosomal subunits. The >100 ribosome assembly factors in the nucleolus are thought to cycle between two states: an operative state (when integrated into subunit assembly intermediates) and a latent state (upon release from intermediates). Although it has become commonplace to refer to the nucleolus as “being a multilayered condensate,” and this may be accurate for latent factors, there is little reason to think that such assertions pertain to the operative state of assembly factors.

Mitochondrial Dna And Other Lines Of Evidence Clarify Species Diversity In The Peromyscus Truei Species Group (Cricetidae: Neotominae), Giovani Hernández-Canchola, Livia León-Paniagua, Jacob A. Esselstyn

Faculty Publications

Deer mice (genus Peromyscus) are among the commonest small mammals in the Nearctic zoogeographic region. Nevertheless, systematic relationships are only partially settled and numerous taxonomic questions await resolution. For instance, researchers have found that some members of the Peromyscus truei species group contain high levels of genetic divergence that could indicate the presence of cryptic species. We analyzed the systematics and phylogenetic relationships of the P. truei group using new and previously published mitochondrial cytochrome b sequences. Our analyses verify several earlier conclusions, but we also detected new clades that deserve recognition. Considering their mitochondrial distinctiveness, allopatric ranges, and previously …

Branched-Chain Amino Acids And Their Interactions With Lipid Metabolites For Increased Risk Of Gestational Diabetes, Ninghua Li, Jing Li, Hui Wang, Jinnan Liu, Weiqin Li, Kai Yang, Xiaoxu Huo, Junhong Leng, Zhijie Yu, Gang Hu, Zhongze Fang, Xilin Yang

Population and Public Health Science Faculty Publications

Objective: We aimed to explore associations of branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) in early pregnancy with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), and whether high BCAAs and lipidomics markers had interactive effects on the risk of GDM. Methods: We conducted a 1:1 case-control study (n=486) nested in a prospective cohort of pregnant women in Tianjin, China. Blood samples were collected at their first antenatal care visit (median 10 gestational weeks). Serum BCAAs, saturated fatty acids (SFA) and lysophosphatidylcholines (LPC) were measured by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analysis. Conditional logistic regression was performed to examine associations of BCAAs with the risk of GDM. Interactions …

Planetary-Scale Change To The Biosphere Signalled By Global Species Translocations Can Be Used To Identify The Anthropocene, Mark Williams, Reinhold Leinfelder, Anthony D. Barnosky, Martin J. Head, Francine M.G. Mccarthy, Alejandro Cearreta, Stephen Himson, Rachael Holmes, Colin N. Waters, Jan Zalasiewicz, Simon Turner, Mary Mcgann, Elizabeth A. Hadly, M. Allison Stegner, Paul Michael Pilkington, Jérôme Kaiser, Juan Carlos Berrio, Ian P. Wilkinson, Jens Zinke, Kristine L. Delong

Faculty Publications

We examine three distinctive biostratigraphic signatures of humans associated with hunting and gathering, landscape domestication and globalization. All three signatures have significant fossil records of regional importance that can be correlated inter-regionally and help describe the developing pattern of human expansion and appropriation of resources. While none have individual first or last appearances that provide a globally isochronous marker, all three signatures overlap stratigraphically, in that they are part of a continuum of change, with complex regional patterns. Here we show that during the later stages of globalization, late nineteenth to twentieth century records of species translocations can be used …

Better Colloidal Lithography: Tilt-Rotate Evaporation Overcomes The Limits Of Plasma Etching, Macayla J. Caso, Michael G. Benton, Kevin M. Mcpeak

Faculty Publications

Colloidal lithography (CL) is a promising method for large-area fabrication of nanohole and nanodot arrays with applications in optical biosensing, separations, and magnetic data storage. However, reducing the diameter of the polystyrene sphere mask by plasma etching unavoidably increases their coefficient of variation (CV) and deforms their shape, thereby limiting the pitch-to-hole-diameter ratio of the resulting nanohole array to less than 3:1 and the minimum hole size to 200 nm with a 10% or better CV. We show that tilt-rotate evaporation colloidal lithography (TRE-CL) breaks the trade-off between hole diameter and polydispersity by leveraging glancing angle evaporation, not plasma etching, …

An Evaluation Of Hemp Cultivation Practices And Cannabinoid Analysis In South Louisiana, Kaylee M. Deynzer

LSU Master's Theses

Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) cultivation research did not exist in Louisiana prior to 2020 (LSU AgCenter Therapeutic Cannabis Committee, 2020). Therefore, nine cultivars of essential oil-type hemp were evaluated in 2020 and 2021 to determine optimum planting dates, in-row plant spacings and THC compliancy for organic field production in south Louisiana. Until suitable genetics for Louisiana’s environment can be identified, an in-row spacing of three feet is recommended for field-grown hemp. Cultivars Berry Blossom, Queen Dream and Stormy Daniels produced sufficient biomass for commercial production. While Berry Blossom, Queen Dream, Oregon White and Putin’s Problem were high-yielding, Oregon White …