Digital Commons Network^™

Large And Stable Genome Edits At The Sorghum Alpha Kafirin Locus Result In Changes In Chromatin Accessibility And Globally Increased Expression Of Genes Encoding Lysine Enrichment, J. Preston Hurst, Abou Yobi, Aixia Li, Shirley Sato, Thomas E. Clemente, Ruthie Angelovici

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Introduction: Sorghum is a resilient and widely cultivated grain crop used for feed and food. However, it’s grain is deficient in lysine, an essential amino acid. This is due to the primary seed storage proteins, the alpha-kafirins, lacking lysine. It has been observed that reductions in alpha-kafirin protein results in rebalancing of the seed proteome and a corresponding increase in non-kafirin proteins which leads to an increased lysine content. However, the mechanisms underlying proteome rebalancing are unclear. This study characterizes a previously developed gene edited sorghum line, with deletions at the alpha kafirin locus.

Methods: A single consensus …

Editorial: Inter-Organ Crosstalk During Exercise In Health And Disease: Extracellular Vesicles As New Kids On The Block, Kenneth Verboven, Ivan Jose Vechetti Jr

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Within exercise physiology, the study of factors potentially mediating interorgan crosstalk during and after exercise is a fascinating field of research. As exercise activates a plethora of metabolic pathways in several tissues, organs and systems, examining the underlying biological mechanisms contributing to exercise related metabolic benefits is imperative. Since two decades, the skeletal muscle is known to secrete humoral factors into the circulation in response to exercise, originally described as “myokines” by Pedersen et al. (2003). These myokines are now well known and extensively studied in the field of exercise science (Pedersen and Febbraio, 2012). Interestingly, exercise also triggers other …

Genome Assembly Of The Brassicaceae Diploid Orychophragmus Violaceus Reveals Complex Whole-Genome Duplication And Evolution Of Dihydroxy Fatty Acid Metabolism, Fan Huang, Peng Chen, Xinyu Tang, Ting Zhong, Taihua Yang, Chinedu Charles Nwafor, Chao Yang, Xianhong Ge, Hong An, Zaiyun Li, Edgar B. Cahoon, Chunyu Zhang

Center for Plant Science Innovation: Faculty Publications

Orychophragmus violaceus is a Brassicaceae species widely cultivated in China, particularly as a winter cover crop in northern China because of its low-temperature tolerance and low water demand. Recently, O. violaceus has also been cultivated as a potential industrial oilseed crop because of its abundant 24- carbon dihydroxy fatty acids (diOH-FAs), which contribute to superior high-temperature lubricant properties. In this study, we performed de novo assembly of the O. violaceus genome. Whole-genome synteny analysis of the genomes of its relatives demonstrated that O. violaceus is a diploid that has undergone an extra whole-genome duplication (WGD) after the Brassicaceae-specific α-WGD event, …

Plant Breeding Advancements With “Crispr-Cas” Genome Editing Technologies Will Assist Future Food Security, M. Ahmad

Center for Plant Science Innovation: Faculty Publications

Genome editing techniques are being used to modify plant breeding, which might increase food production sustainably by 2050. A product made feasible by genome editing is becoming better known, because of looser regulation and widespread acceptance. The world’s population and food supply would never have increased proportionally under current farming practices. The development of plants and food production has been greatly impacted by global warming and climate change. Therefore, minimizing these effects is crucial for agricultural production that is sustainable. Crops are becoming more resilient to abiotic stress because of sophisticated agricultural practices and a better understanding of the abiotic …

Syndemics And Social Factors: Infectious Disease Patterns Within The Population Of People Experiencing Homelessness In The United States, Kathleen Berzonsky

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Individuals experiencing homelessness are at increased risk of suffering from infectious diseases. This is due to a number of social factors and healthcare disparities, as well as the idea of syndemics, by which diseases cluster together to worsen disease burden. Current intervention strategies approach treatment from a post-infection perspective, but reducing transmission rates of infectious diseases within the population of people experiencing homelessness will require a shift in the healthcare framework. The issue of people experiencing homelessness must be viewed through a biosocial lens, focusing on preventative care and treatment. I provide an overview of the social factors governing infectious …

Cell Volume As A Determinant Of Virus-Mediated Population Growth In Ciliates, Jace Miller, John Paul Delong Phd

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Many protists and other small aquatic organisms consume virus particles, a behavior known as virovory. Some species of protists, such as the ciliate Halteria grandinella, can grow and divide using viruses as their sole food source. Other ciliate species have previously been shown to consume large quantities of viral particles, but it is unclear if they are able to support population growth with viruses alone. Because large ciliates have a higher energy demand, we hypothesize that they will be unable to support population growth on a virus-only diet. We fed nine ciliate species a diet of chloroviruses and found …

Association Of Excessive Precipitation And Agricultural Land Use With Honey Bee Colony Performance, Gabriela M. Quinlan, Rufus Isaacs, Clint R. V. Otto, Autumn H. Smart, Meghan O. Milbrath

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

Context From landscape variables to weather, multiple environmental factors affect honey bees and other pollinators. Detailed honey bee colony assessments in a variety of landscape and weather conditions offer the opportunity to develop a mechanistic understanding of how landscape composition, configuration, and weather are associated with colony nutrition, demography, and productivity.

Objectives Our objective was to test if weather and landscape characteristics (e.g., agricultural versus forested land use) are associated with different honey bee colony outcomes (foraged nectar mass, foraged pollen mass, pupal population size, and adult population size change).

Methods We collected detailed colony measurements on over 450 honey …

Spectral Features Of Non-Nutritive Suck Dynamics In Extremely Preterm Infants, Steven M. Barlow, Chunxiao Liao, Jaehoon Lee, Seungman Kim, Jill L. Maron, Dongli Song, Priya Jegatheesan, Balaji Govindaswami, Bernard J. Wilson, Kushal Bhakta, John P. Cleary

United States Public Health Resources

Background: Non-nutritive suck (NNS) is used to promote ororhythmic patterning and assess oral feeding readiness in preterm infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). While time domain measures of NNS are available in real time at cribside, our understanding of suck pattern generation in the frequency domain is limited. The aim of this study is to model the development of NNS in the frequency domain using Fourier and machine learning (ML) techniques in extremely preterm infants (EPIs).

Methods: A total of 117 EPIs were randomized to a pulsed or sham orocutaneous intervention during tube feedings 3 times/day …

An Evidence-Based Design, Translation, And Implementation Of A Hypertension Health Education Pamphlet, Katie Patton

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Health equity is the opportunity for all to attain their highest level of health. This includes creating understandable educational resources that aid in reducing risk and controlling symptoms of disease. A singular piece of written education material will not be effective among all in a broad population due to the many different backgrounds in which people originate. While this may seem obvious, there is a wide gap between knowledge and action. This gap leads to health disparities, or differences in health status between people that are related to social or demographic factors such as race, gender, income, or geographic region …

Evidence For A Causal Role For Escherichia Coli Strains Identified As Adherent-Invasive (Aiec) In Intestinal Inflammation, Hatem Kittana, Joao Carlos Gomes-Neto, Kari Heck, Anthony Juritsch, Jason Sughroue, Yibo Xian, Sara Mantz, Rafael R. Segura Muñoz, Liz Cody, Robert J. Schmaltz, Christopher L. Anderson, Rodney A. Moxley, Jesse M. Hostetter, Samodha C. Fernando, Jennifer Clarke, Stephen D. Kachman, Clayton E. Cressler, Andrew K. Benson, Jens Walter

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Enrichment of adherent-invasive Escherichia coli (AIEC) has been consistently detected in subsets of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients. Although some AIEC strains cause colitis in animal models, these studies did not systematically compare AIEC with non-AIEC strains, and causal links between AIEC and disease are still disputed. Specifically, it remains unclear whether AIEC shows enhanced pathogenicity compared to that of commensal E. coli found in the same ecological microhabitat and if the in vitro phenotypes used to classify strains as AIEC are pathologically relevant. Here, we utilized in vitro phenotyping and a murine model of intestinal inflammation to systematically compare …

Public Distrust, Political Participation, And The Role Of Student Government, Christine Trinh

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

The turn of the 21st century presented a government led by public distrust. More and more people are growing skeptical of the government due to its previous actions, as well as overall longstanding disdain and misinformation, passed on through generations. Like many other fields, political participation is expected to be heavily influenced by rising public distrust in the government. However, there is hope in mitigating public distrust to increase political participation. Previous studies have proven civic engagement, specifically in student government at the collegiate level, leads to creating higher public trust and a wealth of political understanding and knowledge. We …

Systematic Review Of Reflection Spectroscopy-Based Skin Carotenoid Assessment In Children, Saima Hasnin, Dipti Dev, Taren Swindle, Susan B. Sisson, Stephanie Jilcott Pitts, Tirna Purkait, Shari C. Clifton, Jocelyn Dixon, Virginia C. Stage

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Assessing children’s skin carotenoid score (SCS) using reflection spectroscopy (RS) is a non-invasive, widely used method to approximate fruit and vegetable consumption (FVC). The aims for the current review were to (1) identify distributions of SCS across demographic groups, (2) identify potential non-dietary correlates for RS-based SCS, (3) summarize the validity and reliability of RSbased SCS assessment, and (4) conduct meta-analyses of studies examining the correlation between RS-based SCS with FVC. A literature search in eight databases in June 2021 resulted in 4880 citations and peer-reviewed publications written in English that investigated children’s (2–10 years old) SCS using RS. We …

Advertising Sports Nutrition Practices To Adolescent Athletes: A Poster Series, Emma Hansen

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Sports nutrition is an important aspect of an athlete’s training and improvement, yet it is often overlooked when it comes to younger competitors. Four posters were created with the intent of providing adolescent athletes, their parents, and their coaches with information about important topics in sports nutrition including a general overview of nutrition goals, hydration strategies, recovery nutrition, and nutritional considerations for vegetarian and vegan youth athletes. The posters were designed to appeal to adolescents from the ages of 13 to 18, and each poster covers its designated topic in detail appropriate for middle and high school-aged athletes. The accompanying …

Proximate Composition, Retained Water, And Bacterial Load For Two Sizes Of Hybrid Catfish (Ictalurus Furcatus × Ictalurus Punctatus) Fillets At Different Process Steps, Manirul Haque, Juan L. Silva

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

The catfish processors in the US are required to state the maximum percentage of retained water content (RWC) on the product label. The objectives of our study were to quantify the RWC of processed hybrid catfish fillets from proximate composition and the bacterial load at different processing points. Water content was determined using oven-dry (AOAC950.46,1990) and Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. Protein and fat content were determined by NIR spectrometer. Psychrotrophic (PPC) and Total Coliform (TCC) counts were enumerated using 3MPetrifilmTM. The fillets’ overall baseline water, protein, and fat content were 77.8, 16.7 and 5.7%, respectively. The RWC of final fresh and …

Nebline, March/April 2023

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Youth-Led Photovoice Project Gives Refugees Opportunity to Explore Mental Health by Emily Gratopp

Upcoming Photovoice Exhibits

Recipe of the Month: Baharat (Middle East Spice Blend) by Emily Gratopp

Early Season Disease Control in the Home Orchard by Sarah Browning

Garden Guide: Things to Do This Month

2023 Chemigation Training

Farm Estate Planning Workshop, March 7

2023 Lincoln Early Childhood Conference, Saturday, March 25

Two Lancaster 4-H’ers Participated in National 4-H Congress

4-H Horse Judging Team at Nationals

Teen Council 4-H’ers Team Up to Lead Lock-In

Heart of 4-H Volunteer Award: Trevor Kauer and Bethany Bettenhausen

4-H Club Gives Youth With …

Assessing Functional Biodiversity For The Future Of Plants, Planet, And People, Ali Loker

Doctor of Plant Health Program: Dissertations and Student Research

Biodiversity plays a critical role in supporting life in global ecosystems and its links to ecosystem services and sustainability are recognized by scientific and non-scientific communities. Growing awareness of the importance of biodiversity is accelerated by discussions of its loss, and how to design interventions to conserve and mitigate a biodiversity crisis. Stakeholders are funding and implementing assessment strategies at various scales to help direct conservation efforts. There is also growing interest in measuring and communicating biodiversity outcomes.

Functional biodiversity characterizes the multiplicity of life forms into groups based on their diverse contributions to natural and agro-ecosystems. Assessing functional biodiversity …

Intensifying A Crop–Fallow System: Impacts On Soil Properties, Crop Yields, And Economics, S. J. Ruis, S. Stepanovic, Humberto Blanco-Canqui

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Intensifying crop–fallow systems could address increased weed control costs, increased land or rental costs, reduced crop diversity, and degraded soil properties in water-limited environments. One strategy to intensify such systems could be the insertion of a short-season crop during fallow. But, how this strategy affects soils, crop production, and farm economics needs further research. Thus, we studied the impacts of replacing fallow in a winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L)–corn (Zea mays L.)–fallow system with a short-season spring crop [field pea (Pisum sativum L.)] on crop yields and economics from 2015 to 2019 and 5-yr cumulative effects on …

Utilizing The Rpe‑Clamp Model To Examine Interactions Among Factors Associated With Perceived Fatigability And Performance Fatigability In Women And Men, Robert W. Smith, Terry J. Housh, Jocelyn E. Arnett, John Paul V. Anders, Tyler J. Neltner, Dolores G. Ortega, Richard J. Schmidt, Glen O. Johnson

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Purpose The purpose of the present study was to examine the interactions between perceived fatigability and performance fatigability in women and men by utilizing the RPE-Clamp model to assess the fatigue-induced effects of a sustained, isometric forearm flexion task anchored to RPE = 8 on time to task failure (TTF), torque, and neuromuscular responses.

Methods Twenty adults (10 men and 10 women) performed two, 3 s forearm flexion maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVICs) followed by a sustained, isometric forearm flexion task anchored to RPE = 8 using the OMNI-RES (0–10) scale at an elbow joint angle of 100°. Electromyographic amplitude …

The Impact Of Poverty Informed Faculty On Community College Student Success, Barbara J. Embacher

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Community college completion has been proven to be a ticket to a middle-class life. Moreover, we know that poverty causes educational barriers, including community college completion. Community colleges across the nation are identifying significant equity gaps between students from poor versus middle-class or affluent households. One solution to close equity gaps and increase student success rates for students experiencing poverty is to educate college faculty through professional development. This includes 1) information on the causes, myths, stereotypes, and other facts about poverty, 2) the impact poverty has on student achievement, and 3) instructional strategies that can help students experiencing poverty …

Encouraging Or Guilt-Inducing? An Analysis Of Fitspiration Content And Its Effect On Body Image And Lifestyle Changes, Brenna Mazour

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

More people are acquiring their nutrition and exercise information from social media accounts called fitspiration. Analyses of fitspiration content have found the focus to be on restrictive diets and excessive exercise that’s appearance driven. Although its intent is to inspire its consumers to change their lifestyle, many speculate that it brings upon negative body image and induces guilt. The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) has been used to determine why people take part in certain health behaviors, such as diets or exercise regimens posted on fitspiration. TPB shows how the characteristics of social media discourage people to use fitspiration as …

Evaluating Metabolic And Genomic Data For Predicting Grain Traits Under High Night Temperature Stress In Rice, Ye Bi, Rafael Massahiro Yassue, Puneet Paul, Balpreet Kaur Dhatt, Jaspreet Sandhu, Phuc Thi Do, Harkamal Walia, Toshihiro Obata, Gota Morota

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The asymmetric increase in average nighttime temperatures relative to increase in average daytime temperatures due to climate change is decreasing grain yield and quality in rice. Therefore, a better genome-level understanding of the impact of higher night temperature stress on the weight of individual grains is essential for future development of more resilient rice. We investigated the utility of metabolites obtained from grains to classify high night temperature (HNT) conditions of genotypes, and metabolites and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to predict grain length, width, and perimeter phenotypes using a rice diversity panel. We found that the metabolic profiles of rice genotypes …

Use Of Organic Acid Mixtures Containing 2-Hydroxy-4-(Methylthio) Butanoic Acid (Hmtba) To Mitigate Salmonella Enterica, Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia Coli (Stec) And Aspergillus Flavus In Pet Food Kibbles, Aiswariya Deliephan, Janak Dhakal, Bhadriraju Subramanyam, Charles G. Aldrich

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Post-processing operations of extruded pet food kibbles involve coating the product with fats and flavorings. These processes increase the risk for cross-contamination with food-borne pathogens such as Salmonella and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), and mycotoxin-producing molds such as Aspergillus spp. after the thermal kill step. In this study, the antimicrobial effects of two types of organic acid mixtures containing 2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio) butanoic acid (HMTBa), Activate DA™ and Activate US WD-MAX™, against Salmonella enterica, STEC and Aspergillus flavus when used as a coating on pet food kibbles were evaluated. Using canola oil and dry dog digest as fat and flavor …

Alfalfa In Rotation With Annual Crops Reduced Nitrate Leaching Potential, Arshdeep Singh, Tahseen Afzal, Bryan Woodbury, Charles Wortmann, Javed Iqbal

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Rotation of perennial alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) with annual crops has the potential to reduce nitrate-nitrogen (NO₃-N) in the vadose zone and increase soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration. The objective of this study was to determine the long-term effects on SOC, NO₃-N, ammonium-N (NH₄-N), and soil water in the 7.2 m depth with an alfalfa rotation compared with continuous corn (Zea mays L.). Soils from six pairs of alfalfa rotation versus continuous corn observation points were sampled to 7.2 m depth in 0.3 m increments. The uppermost 0.3 m was divided into …

Dose And Route Of Administration Determine The Efficacy Of Prophylactic Immunotherapy For Peanut Allergy In A Brown Norway Rat Model, Tiffany Kirkaldy Spaanager Sztuk, Neil Marcus Rigby, Lasse Nørskov-Nielsen, Stef J. Koppelman, Ana Isabel Sancho, Niels-Peter Hell Knudsen, Justin Marsh, Philip Johnson, Shashank Gupta, Alan Robert Mackie, Jeppe Madura Larsen, Katrine Lindholm Bøgh

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Introduction: Allergen-specific immunotherapy (IT) is emerging as a viable option for treatment of peanut allergy. Yet, prophylactic IT remains unexplored despite early introduction of peanut in infancy was shown to prevent allergy. There is a need to understand how allergens interact with the immune system depending on the route of administration, and how different dosages of allergen may protect from sensitisation and a clinical active allergy. Here we compared peanut allergen delivery via the oral, sublingual (SL), intragastric (IG) and subcutaneous (SC) routes for the prevention of peanut allergy in Brown Norway (BN) rats.

Methods: BN rats were …

Soybean Seed Protein Concentration Is Limited By Nitrogen Supply In Tropical And Subtropical Environments In Brazil, E. H. Figueiredo Moura Da Silva, N. Cafaro La Menza, G. G. Munareto, A. J. Zanon, Santos Carvalho, F. R. Marin

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Soybean production contributes to ca. 60% of global plant-based protein used for food and feed. Brazil is the largest soybean producer and exporter, with 60% from tropical and 40% from subtropical environments. Nitrogen (N) can play an essential role in the storage of proteins in seeds; thus, it could be a key factor in increasing the quantity and quality of seeds in high-yielding soybean crops. Unlike in temperate environments, there is a gap of knowledge on whether soybean grown under tropical and subtropical climates are limited by N-fertilization to sustain the seed yield increase without detriments in seed protein concentration. …

Abrunning: Beginner’S Guide To Running-Based Training Programs, Alexander Boerner

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This thesis is used to introduce any level of runner to training program creation and give resources to allow the individual to create their own. This was done through a website that has information on warm up, cool down, strength and conditioning, running programs, nutrition, hydration, and running aids. The website gives readers insight on each of the topics while giving them resources on how to implement the information within their programs. The written portion of this thesis is used to detail the creation of said website and the thought process that went into each of its components from structure …

An Innovative Approach To Improve Oil Production And Quality Of Mustard (Brassica Juncea L.) With Multi-Nutrient-Rich Polyhalite, Biswajit Pramanick, B.S. Mahapatra, Debarati Datta, Prithwiraj Dey, S.P. Singh, Ajay Kumar, Bappa Paramanik, Neeraj Awasthi

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Polyhalite popularly known as POLY4 is a multi-nutrient fertiliser containing K, S, Mg, Ca, and micronutrients. POLY4 has a low carbon footprint, is certified for organic agriculture, and has the potential to improve crop productivity and quality attributes Indian mustard which often faces challenges due to imbalanced nutrition supplied in the current fertilisation schedule. The hypothesis of the study was that the multi-nutrient fartiliser POLY4 can ensure balanced nutrition for Indian mustard. Considering this, a field experiment was conducted during the winter seasons of 2017–18 and 2018–19 to evaluate the effect of POLY4 on Indian mustard (Brassica juncea L.) …

Journal Of Dairy Science® 2022 Editorial Report, Paul J. Kononoff

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

In 2022, the 105th volume of the Journal of Dairy Science was published. As we review the journal’s last year, it may be useful to reflect on the purpose of scientific publishing. This can be simply stated as the dissemination of results that extends knowledge to open the door for new concepts or advances in the field (Chan, 2018). Similar to other journals, in addition to original research articles, Journal of Dairy Science also publishes invited reviews and other paper types to pursue this purpose. The journal also has other valuable roles. For example, scientific journals actively support authors in …

Positive Health Outcomes Associated With Live Microbe Intake From Foods, Including Fermented Foods, Assessed Using The Nhanes Database, Colin Hill, Daniel J. Tancredi, Christopher J. Cifelli, Joanne L. Slavin, Jaime Gahche, Maria L. Marco, Robert Hutkins, Victor L. Fulgoni Iii, Daniel Merenstein, Mary Ellen Sanders

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Background: Live dietary microbes have been hypothesized to contribute to human health but direct evidence is lacking.

Objectives: This study aimed to determine whether the dietary consumption of live microbes is linked to improved health outcomes.

Methods: Data from the NHANES 2001–2018 were used to assess microbial intake and their adjusted associations with selected physiological parameters (e.g., blood pressure, anthropometric measures, and biomarkers) among adults aged 19 y and older. Regression models were constructed to assess the microbial intake with each physiological parameter and adjusted for demographics and other covariates. Microbial intake was assessed as both a …

Pearl Millet Response To Drought: A Review, Nikee Shrestha, Hao Hu, Kumar Shrestha, Andrew N. Doust

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The C4 grass pearl millet is one of the most drought tolerant cereals and is primarily grown in marginal areas where annual rainfall is low and intermittent. It was domesticated in sub-Saharan Africa, and several studies have found that it uses a combination of morphological and physiological traits to successfully resist drought. This review explores the short term and long-term responses of pearl millet that enables it to either tolerate, avoid, escape, or recover from drought stress. The response to short term drought reveals fine tuning of osmotic adjustment, stomatal conductance, and ROS scavenging ability, along with ABA and ethylene …