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Predation Risk Perception, Food Density And Conspecific Cues Shape Foraging Decisions In A Tropical Lizard, Maximilian Drakeley, Oriol Lapiedra, Jason J. Kolbe

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

When foraging, animals can maximize their fitness if they are able to tailor their foraging decisions to current environmental conditions. When making foraging decisions, individuals need to assess the benefits of foraging while accounting for the potential risks of being captured by a predator. However, whether and how different factors interact to shape these decisions is not yet well understood, especially in individual foragers. Here we present a standardized set of manipulative field experiments in the form of foraging assays in the tropical lizard Anolis cristatellus in Puerto Rico. We presented male lizards with foraging opportunities to test how the …

2015-09 Library Impact Statement For Bio 401x Survey Of Tropical Ecotourism, Michael Cerbo

Library Impact Statements

Library Impact Statement submitted in response to new course proposal for BIO 401X Survey of Tropical Ecotourism. This course was supported with no need for additional resources. Responding library faculty: Michael Cerbo. Requesting faculty: Brad Wetherbee.

Effects Of Dysprosium Oxide Nanoparticles On Escherichia Coli, N. M. Anaya, F. Soloman, Vinka Oyanedel-Craver

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

There is increasing interest in the study of dysprosium oxide nanoparticles (nDy₂O₃) for biomedical applications due to their fluorescence and paramagnetic properties. However, the fate of nDy₂O₃ and their effects on natural biological systems are a growing concern. This study assessed the toxicity of nDy₂O₃ on Escherichia coli for concentrations between 0.02 and 2 mg L⁻¹, exposed to three concentrations of NaCl (8500, 850, and 85 mg L⁻¹) and three glucose concentrations (35, 70, and 140 mg L⁻¹). The ranges of these variables were …

Draft Genome Sequence Of The Shellfish Larval Probiotic Bacillus Pumilus Ri06-95, Meagan Hamblin, Edward Spinard, Marta Gomez-Chiarri, David R. Nelson, David C. Rowley

Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Publications

Bacillus pumilus RI06-95 is a marine bacterium isolated in Narragansett, Rhode Island, which has shown probiotic activity against marine pathogens in larval shellfish. We report the genome of B. pumilus RI06-95, which provides insight into the microbe’s probiotic ability and may be used in future studies of the probiotic mechanism.

Insecticides Promote Viral Outbreaks By Altering Herbivore Competition, Huipeng Pan, Evan L. Preisser, Dong Chu, Shaoli Wang, Qingjun Wu, Yves Carrière, Xuguo Zhou, Youjun Zhang

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

While the management of biological invasions is often characterized by a series of single-species decisions, invasive species exist within larger food webs. These biotic interactions can alter the impact of control/eradication programs and may cause suppression efforts to inadvertently facilitate invasion spread and impact. We document the rapid replacement of the invasive Bemisia Middle East–Asia Minor I (MEAM1) cryptic biotype by the cryptic Mediterranean (MED) biotype throughout China and demonstrate that MED is more tolerant of insecticides and a better vector of tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) than MEAM1. While MEAM1 usually excludes MED under natural conditions, insecticide application …

Helping Students Understand Media: Examining The Efficacy Of Interdisciplinary Media Training At The University Level, Hans C. Schmidt

Journal of Media Literacy Education

Crowded curriculums and restrictive program requirements often mean that comprehensive media literacy education is impractical at the university level, and that media literacy competencies can be addressed only in the form of narrowly focused lessons integrated into existing classes. This study considers the extent to which such limited lessons can lead to the development of broader, well-rounded media literacy competencies. Data gathered from a quasi-experiment involving 118 participants suggests that narrowly focused media lessons can be used to encourage the development of broader media literacy competencies, but that focused instruction remains necessary as well.

2015-08 Library Impact Statement For Bch 460x Modern Approaches To Molecular And Cell Biology, Michael Cerbo

Collection Development Reports and Documents

Library Impact Statement submitted in response to new course proposal for BCH 460X Modern Approaches to Molecular and Cell Biology. This class was supported with no need for additional resources. Responding library faculty: Michael Cerbo. Requesting faculty: Jodi Camberg

2015-08 Library Impact Statement For Bch 560x Modern Approaches To Molecular And Cell Biology, Michael Cerbo

Collection Development Reports and Documents

Library Impact Statement submitted in response to new course proposal for BCH 560X Modern Approaches to Molecular and Cell Biology. This class was supported with no need for additional resources. Responding library faculty: Michael Cerbo. Requesting faculty: Jodi Camberg.

2015-03 Library Impact Statement For Bch 460x Modern Approaches To Molecular And Cell Biology, Michael Cerbo

Library Impact Statements

Library Impact Statement submitted in response to new course proposal for BCH 460X Modern Approaches to Molecular and Cell Biology. This class was supported with no need for additional resources. Responding library faculty: Michael Cerbo. Requesting faculty: Jodi Camberg

2015-03 Library Impact Statement For Bch 560x, Michael Cerbo

Library Impact Statements

Library Impact Statement submitted in response to new course proposal for BCH 560X Modern Approaches to Molecular and Cell Biology This class was supported with no need for additional resources. Responding library faculty: Michael Cerbo. Requesting faculty: Jodi Camberg.

Oyster Reef Restoration Supports Increased Nekton Biomass And Potential Commercial Fishery Value, Austin T. Humphries, Megan K. La Peyre

Fisheries, Animal and Veterinary Sciences Faculty Publications

Across the globe, discussions centered on the value of nature drive many conservation and restoration decisions. As a result, justification for management activities increasingly asks for two lines of evidence: (1) biological proof of augmented ecosystem function or service, and (2) monetary valuation of these services. For oyster reefs, which have seen significant global declines and increasing restoration work, the need to provide both biological and monetary evidence of reef services on a local-level has become more critical in a time of declining resources. Here, we quantified species biomass and potential commercial value of nekton collected from restored oyster ( …

Three-Year Improvements In Weight Status And Weight-Related Behaviors In Middle School Students: The Healthy Choices Study, Karen E. Peterson, Jennifer L. Spandano-Gasbarro, Mary L. Greaney, S. Bryn Austin, Solomon Mezgebu, Anne T. Hunt, Emily A. Blood, Chrissy Horan, Henry A. Feldman, Stavroula K. Osganian, Maria F. Bettencourt, Tracy K. Richmond

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Introduction:

Few dissemination evaluations exist to document the effectiveness of evidence-based childhood obesity interventions outside the research setting.

Objective:

Evaluate Healthy Choices (HC), a multi-component obesity prevention program, by examining school-level changes in weight-related behaviors and weight status and the association of implementation components with odds of overweight/obesity.

Methods:

We compared baseline and Year 3 school-level behavioral and weight status outcomes with paired t-tests adjusted for schools’ socio-demographic characteristics. We used generalized estimating equations to examine the odds of overweight/obesity associated with program components.

Setting/Participants:

Consecutive sample of 45 of 51 middle schools participating in the HC program with complete …

Public Services Annual Report 2014-2015, Deborah Mongeau

Public Services Reports

Annual report of the Public Services Department at the University of Rhode Island Libraries.

An Analysis Of Overstory Tree Canopy Cover In Sites Occupied By Native And Introduced Cottontails In The Northeastern United States With Recommendations For Habitat Management For New England Cottontail, Bill Buffum, Thomas J. Mcgreevy Jr., Amy E. Gottfried, Mary E. Sullivan, Thomas P. Husband

Natural Resources Science Faculty Publications

The New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis) is a high conservation priority in the Northeastern United States and has been listed as a candidate species under the Endangered Species Act. Loss of early successional habitat is the most common explanation for the decline of the species, which is considered to require habitat with dense low vegetation and limited overstory tree canopy. Federal and state wildlife agencies actively encourage landowners to create this habitat type by clearcutting blocks of forest. However, there are recent indications that the species also occupies sites with moderate overstory tree canopy cover. This is important …

Phytoplankton-Bacterial Interactions Mediate Micronutrient Colimitation At The Coastal Antarctic Sea Ice Edge, Erin M. Bertrand, John P. Mccrow, Ahmed Moustafa, Hong Zheng, Jeffrey B. Mcquaid, Thomas O. Delmont, Anton F. Post, Rachel E. Sipler, Jenna L. Spackeen, Kai Xu, Deborah A. Bronk, David A. Hutchins, Andrew E. Allen

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

Southern Ocean primary productivity plays a key role in global ocean biogeochemistry and climate. At the Southern Ocean sea ice edge in coastal McMurdo Sound, we observed simultaneous cobalamin and iron limitation of surface water phytoplankton communities in late Austral summer. Cobalamin is produced only by bacteria and archaea, suggesting phytoplankton–bacterial interactions must play a role in this limitation. To characterize these interactions and investigate the molecular basis of multiple nutrient limitation, we examined transitions in global gene expression over short time scales, induced by shifts in micronutrient availability. Diatoms, the dominant primary producers, exhibited transcriptional patterns indicative of co-occurring …

The Ph Low Insertion Peptide Phlip Variant 3 As A Novel Marker Of Acidic Malignant Lesions, Thomas T. Tapmeier, Anna Moshnikova, John Beech, Danny Allen, Paul Kinchesh, Sean Smart, Adrian Harris, Alan Mcintyre, Donald M. Engelman, Oleg A. Andreev, Yana K. Reshetnyak, Ruth J. Muschel

Physics Faculty Publications

Current strategies for early detection of breast and other cancers are limited in part because some lesions identified as potentially malignant do not develop into aggressive tumors. Acid pH has been suggested as a key characteristic of aggressive tumors that might distinguish aggressive lesions from more indolent pathology. We therefore investigated the novel class of molecules, pH low insertion peptides (pHLIPs), as markers of low pH in tumor allografts and of malignant lesions in a mouse model of spontaneous breast cancer, BALB/neu-T. pHLIP Variant 3 (Var3) conjugated with fluorescent Alexa546 was shown to insert into tumor spheroids in a sequence-specific …

Diversity Of Synechococcus At The Martha's Vineyard Coastal Observatory: Insights From Culture Isolations, Clone Libraries, And Flow Cytometry, Kristen R. Hunter-Cevera, Anton F. Post, Emily E. Peacock, Heidi M. Sosik

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

The cyanobacterium Synechococcus is a ubiquitous, important phytoplankter across the world’s oceans. A high degree of genetic diversity exists within the marine group, which likely contributes to its global success. Over 20 clades with different distribution patterns have been identified. However, we do not fully understand the environmental factors that control clade distributions. These factors are likely to change seasonally, especially in dynamic coastal systems. To investigate how coastal Synechococcus assemblages change temporally, we assessed the diversity of Synechococcus at the Martha’s Vineyard Coastal Observatory (MVCO) over three annual cycles with culture-dependent and independent approaches. We further investigated the abundance …

Electronic Journals Overlap Analysis 2015, Michael A. Cerbo Ii

Technical Services Reports and Statistics

Overlap analysis for the University of Rhode Island's electronic journals are complied alphabetically by database name. The report shows the number or titles that are exclusive to that database as compiled by Serials Solutions.

The table located under the report gives a brief explanation of the headings used in the analysis.

2015-07 Library Impact Statement For Mic 336 Microbial Biofilms, Michael Cerbo

Collection Development Reports and Documents

Library Impact Statement in response to new course submission for MIC 336 Microbial Biofilms. This class was supported with no need for additional resources. Responding library faculty: Michael Cerbo. Requesting faculty: Jay Sperry.

2015-07 Library Impact Statement For Mic 336 Microbial Biofilms, Michael Cerbo

Library Impact Statements

Library Impact Statement submitted in response to new course proposal for MIC 336 Microbial Biofilms. This class was supported with no need for additional resources. Responding library faculty: Michael Cerbo. Requesting faculty: Jay F. Sperry.

Evidence For Changes In Subsurface Circulation In The Late Eocene Equatorial Pacific From Radiolarian-Bound Nitrogen Isotope Values, Rebecca S. Robinson, Theodore C. Moore, Andrea M. Erhardt, Howie D. Scher

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

Microfossil-bound organic matter represents an important archive of surface ocean environmental information. Sedimentary nitrogen (N) isotope reconstructions of surface nitrate consumption and nitrogen source changes are made using fossil diatom (autotrophs) and planktic foraminiferal (heterotrophs)-bound organic matter with success. However, because diatoms and planktic foraminifera are poorly preserved and sedimentary organic matter content is near zero during the late Eocene, our ability to examine nutrient dynamics across this important climate transition is limited. Here we present new data exploring the use of N isotope records from radiolarian tests. A comparison of surface ocean nitrate and core top bulk and radiolarian …

Curricular Affairs Committee Report # 528 Appendix A, University Of Rhode Island Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Committee Reports and Appendices

No abstract provided.

A Complementation Assay For In Vivo Protein Structure/Function Analysis In Physcomitrella Patens (Funariaceae), Tess R. Scavuzzo-Duggan, Arielle M. Chaves, Alison W. Roberts

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Premise of Study:

A method for rapid in vivo functional analysis of engineered proteins was developed using Physcomitrella patens.

Methods and Results:

A complementation assay was designed for testing structure/function relationships in cellulose synthase (CESA) proteins. The components of the assay include (1) construction of test vectors that drive expression of epitope-tagged PpCESA5 carrying engineered mutations, (2) transformation of a ppcesa5 knockout line that fails to produce gametophores with test and control vectors, (3) scoring the stable transformants for gametophore production, (4) statistical analysis comparing complementation rates for test vectors to positive and negative control vectors, and (5) analysis …

Imaging Tumor Acidity: Ph-Low Insertion Peptide Probe For Optoacoustic Tomography, Yana Reshetnyak

Physics Faculty Publications

Optoacoustic tomography has been used for the detection of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma targeted by pH-Low Insertion Peptide (pHLIP) conjugated to near infrared fluorescent dye. It was proved that tumor targeting is a pH-dependent. The approach could have major implication for detection and monitoring of pancreatic and other cancers.

Serials Solutions Click-Through Statistics By Provider And Database 2014-2015, Andree Rathemacher

Technical Services Reports and Statistics

Statistics on the total number of database and journal-level clicks, by provider and database, of Serials Solutions tools at the University of Rhode Island Libraries by month for 2014-2015. Clicks may have originated from the A-Z full text electronic journal list (at http://zu4tq4pb5v.search.serialssolutions.com/), from OpenURL links ("360 Link"), or the 856 fields of Serials Solutions-generated MARC records ("360 MARC Updates").

Serials Solutions Click-Through Statistics By Journal Title And Issn 2014-2015, Andree Rathemacher

Technical Services Reports and Statistics

Statistics on the total number of journal-level clicks, by journal title (on all platforms), of Serials Solutions tools at the University of Rhode Island Libraries by month for 2014-2015. Clicks may have originated from the A-Z full text electronic journal list (at http://zu4tq4pb5v.search.serialssolutions.com/), from OpenURL links ("360 Link"), or the 856 fields of Serials Solutions-generated MARC records ("360 MARC Updates").

Serials Solutions Subject Search Report 2014-2015, Andree Rathemacher

Technical Services Reports and Statistics

Statistics on the total number of Serials Solutions subject searches at the University of Rhode Island Libraries by month for 2014-2015. Shows how many times the A-Z full text electronic journal list (at http://zu4tq4pb5v.search.serialssolutions.com/) was browsed by specific subjects.

Serials Solutions 360 Link Referring Sources Report 2014-2015, Andree Rathemacher

Technical Services Reports and Statistics

Statistics for 2014-2015 on the number of OpenURL requests made to the "Serials Solutions 360 Link" OpenURL link resolver (at http://zu4tq4pb5v.search.serialssolutions.com/) for items held by the University of Rhode Island Libraries.

Information provided includes Referring Source ID, total Number of Requests for the year, and %Total (Number of Requests).

Note: "36520" = EBSCOhost

Structure-Based Redesign Of Lysostaphin Yields Potent Antistaphylococcal Enzymes That Evade Immune Cell Surveillance, Kristina Blazanovic, Hongliang Zhao, Yoonjoo Choi, Wen Li, Regina S. Salvat, Daniel C. Osipovitch, Jennifer Fields, Leonard Moise, Brett L. Berwin, Steven N. Fiering, Chris Bailey-Kellogg, Karl E. Griswold

Institute for Immunology and Informatics Faculty Publications

Staphylococcus aureus infections exert a tremendous burden on the health-care system, and the threat of drug-resistant strains continues to grow. The bacteriolytic enzyme lysostaphin is a potent antistaphylococcal agent with proven efficacy against both drug-sensitive and drug-resistant strains; however, the enzyme’s own bacterial origins cause undesirable immunogenicity and pose a barrier to clinical translation. Here, we deimmunized lysostaphin using a computationally guided process that optimizes sets of mutations to delete immunogenic T cell epitopes without disrupting protein function. In vitro analyses showed the methods to be both efficient and effective, producing seven different deimmunized designs exhibiting high function and reduced …

Migrating Songbirds On Stopover Prepare For, And Recover From, Oxidative Challenges Posed By Long-Distance Flight, Megan M. Skrip, Ulf Bauchinger, Wolfgang Goymann, Leonida Fusani, Massimiliano Cardinale, Rebecca R. Alan, Scott R. Mcwilliams

Natural Resources Science Faculty Publications

Managing oxidative stress is an important physiological function for all aerobic organisms, particularly during periods of prolonged high metabolic activity, such as long-distance migration across ecological barriers. However, no previous study has investigated the oxidative status of birds at different stages of migration and whether that oxidative status depends on the condition of the birds. In this study, we compared (1) energy stores and circulating oxidative status measures in (a) two species of Neotropical migrants with differing migration strategies that were sampled at an autumn stopover site before an ecological barrier; and (b) a species of trans-Saharan migrant sampled at …