Digital Commons Network^™

Impacts Of A Parenting Newsletter On Fathers Of Kindergarten Children, Sean E. Brotherson, Erin Kramer Holmes, Christopher J. Bouwhuis

Faculty Publications

This study is the first assessment of the perceived effectiveness of a parenting newsletter written specifically for fathers or father figures. The Father Times newsletter was distributed weekly for six weeks to all families of kindergarten children at a local school. Once hundred seventy-seven fathers responded to a self-report questionnaire regarding usage of the parenting newsletter, perceptions of the newsletter as a resource, and impacts of fathers' attitudes, knowledge, behaviors, and father–child relationship quality. Two-thirds of fathers in the sample reported changing at least "somewhat" in all nine outcomes explored. Neither father age nor number of children in the home …

Influences On Active Family Leisure And A Healthy Lifestyle Among Adolescents, Shallie M. Taylor, Peter Ward, Ramon Zabriskie, Brian Hill, Carl Hanson

Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to examine how attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control influence adolescents’ intent to participate in active family leisure within the theory of plan behavior framework. Adolescents (N = 472) completed an online questionnaire about their perceptions and actual participation in active family leisure. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data. A post-hoc analysis also considered individual leisure and its role on active family leisure. Attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control were significant predictors of intent to participate in active family leisure.

Social Relationships And Mortality, Julianne Holt-Lunstad, Timothy B. Smith

Faculty Publications

Social relationships benefit not only mental health but also physical health. This review addresses the following questions: (1) What is the overall magnitude of the effect of social relationships on risk for premature death? (2) How generalized is the effect and are there factors known to influence this association? (3) What are the likely pathways by which social relationships influence longevity? The article concludes by discussing the implications of these findings for potential interventions aimed at reducing risk for mortality.

An Instructional Pyramid: Expanding Coach Wooden's "Pyramid Of Success" To Guide P.E.T.E. Professionals, Robert Christenson, David C. Barney

Faculty Publications

What in the teaching-learning process can PETE (Physical Education Teacher Education) faculty identify as being effective and a critical part of this multifaceted practice? Which of the physical activity learning experiences best serves the student? Finally, how does a future-professional physical education teacher, who is inexperienced and intimidated by their first job circumstances, wade through all the information and responsibilities to perform up to expectations? As described by Veal (2011), "Teachers operate in an intensely complicated and demanding world. They face 30 or more students at once – each one different from the other, demanding individualized attention and treatment. Teachers …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Amphiphilic Cyclic Diblock Copolypeptoids From N-Heterocyclic Carbene-Mediated Zwitterionic Polymerization Of N-Substituted N-Carboxyanhydride, Chang Uk Lee, Thomas P. Smart, Li Guo, Thomas H. Epps, Donghui Zhang

Faculty Publications

N-Heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-mediated ring-opening polymerization of N-decyl-N-carboxylanhydride monomer (De-NCA) has been shown to occur in a controlled manner, yielding cyclic poly(N-decylglycine)s (c-PNDGs) with polymer molecular weights (MW) between 4.8 and 31 kg mol -1 and narrow molecular weight distributions (PDI < 1.15). The reaction exhibits pseudo-first-order kinetics with respect to monomer concentration. The polymer MW increases linearly with conversion, consistent with a living polymerization. ESI MS and SEC analyses confirm the cyclic architectures of the forming polymers. DSC and WAXS studies reveal that the c-PNDG homopolymers are highly crystalline with two prominent first-order transitions at 72-79 °C (T m,1) and 166-177 °C (T m,2), which have been attributed to side chain and main chain melting, respectively. A series of amphiphilic cyclic diblock copolypeptoids [i.e., poly(N-methylglycine)-b-poly(N- decylglycine) (c-PNMG-b-PNDG)] with variable molecular weight and composition were synthesized by sequential NHC-mediated polymerization of the corresponding N-methyl-N-carboxyanhydride (Me-NCA) and De-NCA monomers. 1H NMR analysis reveals that adjusting the initial monomer to NHC molar ratio can readily control the block copolymer chain length and composition. Time-lapsed light scattering and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) analyses of c-PNDG-b-PNMG samples showed that the amphiphilic cyclic block copolypeptoids self-assemble into spherical micelles that reorganize into micrometer-long cylindrical micelles with uniform diameter in room temperature methanol over the course of several days. An identical morphological transition has also been noted for the linear analogues, which occurs more rapidly than for the cyclic copolypeptoids. We tentatively attribute this difference to the different crystallization kinetics of the solvophobic block (i.e., PNDG) in the cyclic and linear block copolypeptoids. © 2011 American Chemical Society.

Learning The Structure Of Gene Regulatory Networks From Time Series Gene Expression Data, Haoni Li, Nan Wang, Ping Gong, Edward J. Perkins, Chaoyang Zhang

Faculty Publications

Background: Dynamic Bayesian Network (DBN) is an approach widely used for reconstruction of gene regulatory networks from time-series microarray data. Its performance in network reconstruction depends on a structure learning algorithm. REVEAL (REVerse Engineering ALgorithm) is one of the algorithms implemented for learning DBN structure and used to reconstruct gene regulatory networks (GRN). However, the two-stage temporal Bayes network (2TBN) structure of DBN that specifies correlation between time slices cannot be obtained by score metrics used in REVEAL.

Methods: In this paper, we study a more sophisticated score function for DBN first proposed by Nir Friedman for stationary …

Transcriptomic Profiles Of Peripheral White Blood Cells In Type Ii Diabetes And Racial Differences In Expression Profiles, Jinghe Mao, Junmei Ai, Xinchun Zhou, Ming Shenwu, Manuel Ong Jr., Marketta Blue, Jasmine T. Washington, Xiaonan Wang, Youping Deng

Faculty Publications

Background: Along with obesity, physical inactivity, and family history of metabolic disorders, African American ethnicity is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes (T2D) in the United States. However, little is known about the differences in gene expression and transcriptomic profiles of blood in T2D between African Americans (AA) and Caucasians (CAU), and microarray analysis of peripheral white blood cells (WBCs) from these two ethnic groups will facilitate our understanding of the underlying molecular mechanism in T2D and identify genetic biomarkers responsible for the disparities.

Results: A whole human genome oligomicroarray of peripheral WBCs was performed on 144 …

The Zfx Gene Is Expressed In Human Gliomas And Is Important In The Proliferation And Apoptosis Of The Human Malignant Glioma Cell Line U251, Youxin Zhou, Zuopeng Su, Yulun Huang, Ting Sun, Sansong Chen, Tingfeng Wu, Guilin Chen, Xueshun Xie, Bin Li, Ziwei Du

Faculty Publications

Background: Zfx is a zinc finger protein of the Zfy family, whose members are highly conserved in vertebrates. Zfx is a shared transcriptional regulator of both embryonic stem cells (ESC) and hematopoietic stem cells (HSC), which suggests a common genetic basis of self-renewal in embryonic and adult stem cells. The level of Zfx expression correlates with aggressiveness and severity in many cancer types, including prostate cancer, breast cancer, and leukemia. However, the importance of Zfx in human glioma is largely unknown. In the present study, we examined the role of Zfx in human glioma. Methods. We detected expression levels of …

Protocol For The Modeling The Epidemiologic Transition Study: A Longitudinal Observational Study Of Energy Balance And Change In Body Weight, Diabetes And Cardiovascular Disease Risk, Amy Luke, Pascal Bovet, Terrence E. Forrester, Estelle V. Lambert, Jacob Plange-Rhule, Dale A. Schoeller, Lara R. Dugas, Ramon A. Durazo-Arvizu, David Shoham, Richard S. Cooper, Soren Brage, Ulf Ekelund, Nelia P. Steyn

Faculty Publications

Background: The prevalence of obesity has increased in societies of all socio-cultural backgrounds. To date, guidelines set forward to prevent obesity have universally emphasized optimal levels of physical activity. However there are few empirical data to support the assertion that low levels of energy expenditure in activity is a causal factor in the current obesity epidemic are very limited. Methods/Design. The Modeling the Epidemiologic Transition Study (METS) is a cohort study designed to assess the association between physical activity levels and relative weight, weight gain and diabetes and cardiovascular disease risk in five population-based samples at different stages of economic …

Pegylated Phthalocyanines: Synthesis And Spectroscopic Properties, Hairong Li, Frank R. Fronczek, M. Graa H. Vicente

Faculty Publications

The synthesis and spectroscopic properties of Zn(II)-phthalocyanines containing up to eight tri(ethylene glycol) groups are described. These pegylated-phthalocyanines are highly soluble in polar solvents and might find application as fluorescence imaging and/or photosensitizing agents for PDT.

Developmental Defects In Mutants Of The Psbp Domain Protein 5 In Arabidopsis Thaliana, Johnna L. Roose, Laurie K. Frankel, Terry M. Bricker

Faculty Publications

Plants contain an extensive family of PsbP-related proteins termed PsbP-like (PPL) and PsbP domain (PPD) proteins, which are localized to the thylakoid lumen. The founding member of this family, PsbP, is an established component of the Photosystem II (PS II) enzyme, and the PPL proteins have also been functionally linked to other photosynthetic processes. However, the functions of the remaining seven PPD proteins are unknown. To elucidate the function of the PPD5 protein (At5g11450) in Arabidopsis, we have characterized a mutant T-DNA insertion line (SALK_061118) as well as several RNAi lines designed to suppress the expression of this gene. The …

Effects Of Prenatal Food And Micronutrient Supplementation On Child Growth From Birth To 54 Months Of Age: A Randomized Trial In Bangladesh, Ashraful Islam Khan, Iqbal Kabir, Eva-Charlotte Ekström, Kajsa Åsling-Monemi, Dewan Shamsul Alam, Edward A. Frongillo Jr., Md Yunus, Shams Arifeen, Lars-Åke Persson

Faculty Publications

Background: There is a lack of information on the optimal timing of food supplementation to malnourished pregnant women and possible combined effects of food and multiple micronutrient supplementations (MMS) on their offspring's growth. We evaluated the effects of prenatal food and micronutrient interventions on postnatal child growth. The hypothesis was that prenatal MMS and early invitation to food supplementation would increase physical growth in the offspring during 0-54 months and a combination of these interventions would further improve these outcomes.

Methods: In the large, randomized MINIMat trial (Maternal and Infant Nutrition Interventions in Matlab), Bangladesh, 4436 pregnant women were enrolled …

A Deep Insight Into The Sialotranscriptome Of The Gulf Coast Tick, Amblyomma Maculatum, Shahid Karim, Parul Singh, José M.C. Ribeiro

Faculty Publications

Background

Saliva of blood sucking arthropods contains compounds that antagonize their hosts' hemostasis, which include platelet aggregation, vasoconstriction and blood clotting; saliva of these organisms also has anti-inflammatory and immunomodullatory properties. Perhaps because hosts mount an active immune response against these compounds, the diversity of these compounds is large even among related blood sucking species. Because of these properties, saliva helps blood feeding as well as help the establishment of pathogens that can be transmitted during blood feeding.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We have obtained 1,626,969 reads by pyrosequencing a salivary gland cDNA library from adult females Amblyomma maculatum ticks at different …

Transient Receptor Potential Channel M4 And M5 In Magnocellular Cells In Rat Supraoptic And Paraventricular Nuclei, R. Teruyama, M. Sakuraba, H. Kurotaki, W. E. Armstrong

Faculty Publications

The neurohypophysial hormones, vasopressin (VP) and oxytocin (OT), are synthesised by magnocellular cells in the supraoptic nucleus (SON) and the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus. The release of VP into the general circulation from the neurohypophysis increases during hyperosmolality, hypotension and hypovolaemia. VP neurones increase hormone release by increasing their firing rate as a result of adopting a phasic bursting. Depolarising after potentials (DAPs) following a series of action potentials are considered to be involved in the generation of the phasic bursts by summating to plateau potentials. We recently discovered a fast DAP (fDAP) in addition to the slower …

Repetitive Elements May Comprise Over Two-Thirds Of The Human Genome, A. P.Jason De Koning, Wanjun Gu, Todd A. Castoe, Mark A. Batzer, David D. Pollock

Faculty Publications

Transposable elements (TEs) are conventionally identified in eukaryotic genomes by alignment to consensus element sequences. Using this approach, about half of the human genome has been previously identified as TEs and low-complexity repeats. We recently developed a highly sensitive alternative de novo strategy, P-clouds, that instead searches for clusters of high-abundance oligonucleotides that are related in sequence space (oligo "clouds"). We show here that P-clouds predicts >840 Mbp of additional repetitive sequences in the human genome, thus suggesting that 66%-69% of the human genome is repetitive or repeat-derived. To investigate this remarkable difference, we conducted detailed analyses of the ability …

Developing A Strawberry Yogurt Fortified With Marine Fish Oil 1, J. D. Estrada, C. Boeneke, P. Bechtel, S. Sathivel

Faculty Publications

Fortified dairy products appeal to a wide variety of consumers and have the potential to increase sales in the yogurt industry and help increase intake of long-chain n-3 fatty acids. The objectives of this study were to develop a strawberry yogurt containing microencapsulated salmon oil (MSO; 2% wt/vol) and evaluate its characteristics during 1 mo of storage. Unpurified salmon oil (USO) was purified (PSO) and both USO and PSO were analyzed for peroxide value (PV), anisidine value (AV), total oxidation, free fatty acids (FFA), and moisture content. A stable emulsion was prepared with 7% PSO, 22% gum arabic, 11% maltodextrin, …

Laboratory Host Range Assessment Of A Predatory Pentatomid, Podisus Maculiventris (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) For Field Release On Guam, Gadi V.P. Reddy, Rosalie Kikuchi

Faculty Publications

Predation by Podisus maculiventris (Say) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) was evaluated with Erionota thrax (L.) (Lepidoptera: Hesperidae), Pericyma cruegeri (Butler) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata Rego Barros (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae), Papilio polytes (L.) (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) and Eudocima phalonia (L.) comb. nov. (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). Both free-choice and no-choice experiments indicated that the P. maculiventris attacked and consumed all the larvae of the 5 species included in the tests. Although the larvae died at different intervals, most of them were dead within 24120 h of the introduction of the predatory species. Since the P. maculiventris is polyphagous in nature and the present findings indicate that these …

Effect Of Soil Type And Exposure Duration On Mortality And Transfer Of Chlorantraniliprole And Fipronil On Formosan Subterranean Termites (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae), Bal K. Gautam, Gregg Henderson

Faculty Publications

The uptake and potential transfer of chlorantraniliprole and fipronil by the Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki, was investigated in the laboratory by using donor-recipient model bioassays. Two different types of substrates, sandy loam soil (18.6% organic matter) and sand (0.19% organic matter), were used to evaluate how these treated substrates impact the direct mortality and transfer efficiency of the two nonrepellent termiticides tested at different concentrations. Chlorantraniliprole exhibited a more delayed mortality on termites than fipronil in sand. In soil, chlorantraniliprole did not cause higher mortality to either donor or recipient termite at any of the tested concentrations during …

Efficacy Of Genetically Modified Bt Toxins Against Insects With Different Genetic Mechanisms Of Resistance, Bruce E. Tabashnik, Fangneng Huang, Mukti N. Ghimire, B. Rogers Leonard, Blair D. Siegfried, Murugesan Rangasamy, Yajun Yang, Yidong Wu, Linda J. Gahan, David G. Heckel, Alejandra Bravo, Mario Soberón

Faculty Publications

Transgenic crops that produce Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) toxins are grown widely for pest control, but insect adaptation can reduce their efficacy. The genetically modified Bt toxins Cry1AbMod and Cry1AcMod were designed to counter insect resistance to native Bt toxins Cry1Ab and Cry1Ac. Previous results suggested that the modified toxins would be effective only if resistance was linked with mutations in genes encoding toxin-binding cadherin proteins. Here we report evidence from five major crop pests refuting this hypothesis. Relative to native toxins, the potency of modified toxins was >350-fold higher against resistant strains of Plutella xylostella and Ostrinia nubilalis in which …

Alu Pair Exclusions In The Human Genome, George W. Cook, Miriam K. Konkel, James D. Major, Jerilyn A. Walker, Kyudong Han, Mark A. Batzer

Faculty Publications

Background: The human genome contains approximately one million Alu elements which comprise more than 10% of human DNA by mass. Alu elements possess direction, and are distributed almost equally in positive and negative strand orientations throughout the genome. Previously, it has been shown that closely spaced Alu pairs in opposing orientation (inverted pairs) are found less frequently than Alu pairs having the same orientation (direct pairs). However, this imbalance has only been investigated for Alu pairs separated by 650 or fewer base pairs (bp) in a study conducted prior to the completion of the draft human genome sequence. Results: We …

Production Of F 1 Offspring With Vitrified Sperm From A Live-Bearing Fish, The Green Swordtail Xiphophorus Hellerii, Rafael Cuevas-Uribe, Huiping Yang, Jonathan Daly, Markita G. Savage, Ronald B. Walter, Terrence R. Tiersch

Faculty Publications

This study reports the first production of offspring with vitrified sperm from a live-bearing fish Xiphophorus hellerii. The overall goal of this study was to develop streamlined protocols for integration into a standardized approach for vitrification of aquatic species germplasm. The objectives were to (1) estimate acute toxicity of cryoprotectants, (2) evaluate vitrification solutions, (3) compare different thawing methods, (4) evaluate membrane integrity of post-thaw sperm vitrified in different cryoprotectants, and (5) evaluate the fertility of vitrified sperm. Nine cryoprotectants and two commercial vitrification additives were tested for acute toxicity and glass forming ability, alone and in combination. Two vitrification …

State Space Model With Hidden Variables For Reconstruction Of Gene Regulatory Networks, Xi Wu, Peng Li, Nan Wang, Ping Gong, Edward J. Perkins, Youping Deng, Chaoyang Zhang

Faculty Publications

Background: State Space Model (SSM) is a relatively new approach to inferring gene regulatory networks. It requires less computational time than Dynamic Bayesian Networks (DBN). There are two types of variables in the linear SSM, observed variables and hidden variables. SSM uses an iterative method, namely Expectation-Maximization, to infer regulatory relationships from microarray datasets. The hidden variables cannot be directly observed from experiments. How to determine the number of hidden variables has a significant impact on the accuracy of network inference. In this study, we used SSM to infer Gene regulatory networks (GRNs) from synthetic time series datasets, investigated …

Two-Dimensional Infrared Spectral Signature And Hydration Of The Oxalate Dianion, Daniel G. Kuroda, Robin M. Hochstrasser

Faculty Publications

Ultrafast vibrational spectra of the aqueous oxalate ion in the region of its carboxylate asymmetric stretch modes show novel relaxation processes. Two-dimensional infrared vibrational echo spectra and the vibrational dynamics obtained from them along with measurements of the anisotropy decay provide a picture in which the localization of the oxalate vibrational excitation onto the carboxylate groups occurs in ∼450 fs. Molecular dynamics simulations are used to characterize the vibrational dynamics in terms of dihedral angle motion between the two carboxylate planes and solvation dynamics. The localization of the oxalate vibrational excitation onto the carboxylates is induced by the fluctuations in …

Positive Cooperative Mechanistic Binding Of Proteins At Low Concentrations: A Comparison Of Poly (Sodium N-Undecanoyl Sulfate) And Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate, Susmita Das, Monica R. Sylvain, Vivian E. Fernand, Jack N. Losso, Bilal El-Zahab, Isiah M. Warner

Faculty Publications

The interactions of the negatively charged achiral molecular micelle, poly (sodium N-undecanoyl sulfate) (poly-SUS), with four different proteins using intrinsic and extrinsic fluorescence spectroscopic probes, are studied. A comparison of poly-SUS with the conventional surfactant, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), and the monomeric species, SUS, is also reported. In this work, we observed that poly-SUS preferentially binds to acidic proteins, exhibiting positive cooperativity at concentrations less than 1. mM for all proteins studied. Moreover, it appears that the hydrophobic microdomain formed through polymerization of the terminal vinyl group of the monomer, SUS, is largely responsible for the superior binding capacity of …

Competencies: A Cure For Pre-Med Curriculum, Winston A. Anderson, Richard M. Amasino, Manuel Ares, Utpal Banerjee, Bonnie Bartel, Victor G. Corces, Catherine L. Drennan, Sarah C.R. Elgin, Irving R. Epstein, Ellen Fanning, Louis J. Guillette, J. O. Handelsman, Graham F. Hatfull, Ronald Raymond Hoy, Darcy Kelley, Leslie A. Leinwand, Richard Losick, Yi Lu, David G. Lynn, Claudia Neuhauser, Diane K. O'Dowd, Toto Olivera, Pavel Pevzner, Rebecca R. Richards-Kortum, Jasper Rine, Robert L. Sah, Scott A. Strobel, Graham C. Walker, David R. Walt, Isiah M. Warner, Sue Wessler, Huntington F. Willard, Richard N. Zare

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Syntheses And Cellular Investigations Of 17 3-, 15 2-, And 13 1-Amino Acid Derivatives Of Chlorin E 6, R. G.Waruna Jinadasa, Xiaoke Hu, M. Graça H. Vicente, Kevin M. Smith

Faculty Publications

A series of amino acid conjugates of chlorin e 6, containing lysine or aspartic acid residues in positions 17 3, 15 2, or 13 1 of the macrocycle were synthesized and investigated as photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy of tumors. All three regioisomers were synthesized in good yields and in five steps or less from pheophytin a (1). In vitro investigations using human carcinoma HEp2 cells show that the 15 2-lysyl regioisomers accumulate the most within cells, and the most phototoxic are the 13 1 regioisomers. The main determinant of biological efficacy appears to be the conjugation site, probably because of …

Investigating Combinatorial Approaches In Virtual Screening On Human Inducible 6-Phosphofructo-2-Kinase/Fructose-2,6-Bisphosphatase (Pfkfb3): A Case Study For Small Molecule Kinases, Robert B. Crochet, Michael C. Cavalier, Minsuh Seo, Jeong Do Kim, Young Sun Yim, Seung Jong Park, Yong Hwan Lee

Faculty Publications

Efforts toward improving the predictiveness in tier-based approaches to virtual screening (VS) have mainly focused on protein kinases. Despite their significance as drug targets, small molecule kinases have been rarely tested with these approaches. In this paper, we investigate the efficacy of a pharmacophore screening-combined structure-based docking approach on the human inducible 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase, an emerging target for cancer chemotherapy. Six out of a total 1364 compounds from NCI's Diversity Set II were selected as true actives via throughput screening. Using a database constructed from these compounds, five programs were tested for structure-based docking (SBD) performance, the MOE of which showed …

Arabidopsis Pht1; 5 Plays An Integral Role In Phosphate Homeostasis, Aaron P. Smith, Vinay K. Nagarajan, Kashchandra G. Raghothama

Faculty Publications

The mobilization of inorganic phosphate (Pi) in planta is a complex process regulated by a number of developmental and environmental cues. Plants possess many Pi transporters that acquire Pi from the rhizosphere and translocate it throughout the plant. A few members of the high-affinity Pht1 family of Pi transporters have been functionally characterized and, for the most part, have been shown to be involved in Pi acquisition. We recently demonstrated that the Arabidopsis Pi transporter, Pht1;5, plays a key role in translocating Pi between tissues. Loss-of-function pht1;5 mutant seedlings accumulated more P in shoots relative to wild type but less …

Radical-Containing Particles Activate Dendritic Cells And Enhance Th17 Inflammation In A Mouse Model Of Asthma, Pingli Wang, Paul Thevenot, Jordy Saravia, Terry Ahlert, Stephania A. Cormier

Faculty Publications

We identified a previously unrecognized component of airborne particulate matter (PM) formed in combustion and thermal processes, namely, environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs). The pulmonary health effects of EPFRs are currently unknown. In the present study, we used a model EPFR-containing pollutant-particle system referred to as MCP230. We evaluated the effects of MCP230 on the phenotype and function of bone marrow - derived dendritic cells (BMDCs) in vitro and lung dendritic cells (DCs) in vivo, and the subsequent T-cell response. We also investigated the adjuvant role of MCP230 on airway inflammation in a mouse model of asthma. MCP230 decreased intracellular …

Horizontal Transmission Of Rickettsia Felis Between Cat Fleas, Ctenocephalides Felis, Supanee Hirunkanokpun, Chutima Thepparit, Lane D. Foil, Kevin R. Macaluso

Faculty Publications

Rickettsia felis is a rickettsial pathogen primarily associated with the cat flea, Ctenocephalides felis. Although laboratory studies have confirmed that R. felis is maintained by transstadial and transovarial transmission in C. felis, distinct mechanisms of horizontal transmission of R. felis among cat fleas are undefined. Based on the inefficient vertical transmission of R. felis by cat fleas and the detection of R. felis in a variety of haematophagous arthropods, we hypothesize that R. felis is horizontally transmitted between cat fleas. Towards testing this hypothesis, flea transmission of R. felis via a bloodmeal was assessed weekly for 4 weeks. Rhodamine B …